The Wolf, The Bat, and The Spider Year 1
by IrishDame777
Summary: Totally Revised. In 1988 a mysterious Irish woman arrives at Hogwarts as the new Muggle Studies Professor. Working for Dumbledore as his newest spy she has three years to prepare for what is sure to be a catalyst to the Dark Lords return. Too bad for her and everyone's favorite Potions Professor, they're going to be anything but uneventful.
1. September 4, 1988

"Rice, Analise"

Severus Snape was only half listening to the sorting ceremony as a small slip of a girl with strawberry blonde hair nervously stumbled her way to the stool. He was more interested in the unknown woman seated between Sybil and Septima. She was tall and broad shouldered for a woman, dressed in shimmering robes of turquoise and wearing a wide brimmed hat trimmed with jeweled netting. It hid most of her face from this angle, but he knew he'd never seen her before.

_Michael isn't here. Has Albus replaced him with her?_

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

He cast his eyes briefly to Pomona's newest house member before turning back to the woman. She was clapping rather enthusiastically and he wondered if she had attended Hogwarts in the same house.

"Richby, Allistar."

That name was enough to draw his attention. Mathias Richby had been a Slytherin two years ahead of him during his time as a student. Snape watched with mild curiosity as a young boy who could only be his son walked up to the stool and sat down. They had the same sandy brown hair and almond shaped eyes and even the same strange curve to their ears. The only difference was their eye color. Mathias had, had vibrant blue eyes and the boys were dark as coal.

Minerva gave him the same encouraging smile she gave every new student before setting the Sorting Hat on his head. Snape frowned. The hat was not making it easy on her. It seemed almost reluctant to be placed on the child's head; wrinkling itself up as tight and small as possible. When it finally slipped down over the boy's eyes it shuddered then twisted back and forth.

"How strange. Has it ever done this before?" Snape turned to their new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Simon Blackwell.

"Not that I am aware of."

Nearly five minutes passed with no house declared and the teachers began throwing each other subtle glances and Snape could see the tension in Minerva's back. He knew she wanted to look to Albus for direction, but she didn't want to worry the child. Was it possible that the hat may not be able to place a student?

"RAVENCLAW!"

The declaration was so sudden and so loud that only years as Albus' spy kept him from jumping out of his seat. Simon and Minerva on the other hand started violently. Many of the students sitting closest recoiled and one of the first years lost their footing and fell.

"What in the world?"

Snape rolled his eyes. Hagrid whispered like a cannon. Minerva gave the half-giant a stern frown and leaned forward to lift the hat. It jerked upward into a crumpled ball of fabric the moment she had hold of it. Allistar, unfazed by the hat's strange behavior, slipped from the stool and turned left. The remaining first years parted quickly to let him pass and the Ravenclaw's sitting at the head of the table edge down as far as they could to let him sit.

The remainder of the sorting was uneventful and the feast as enjoyable as ever. During the end of feast announcements he finally found out who the newcomer was. Dumbledore stood, announcing that the Forbidden Forest was out of bounds, reminding everyone that magic in the corridors between classes was not allowed, and that Quidditch trials would be held the second week of term.

"I would like you to welcome our two newest staff members. Allow me to introduce Professor Blackwell who will be taking over the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts and Professor O'Connor who will be our new Muggle Studies teacher."

Both stood to greet the students and Snape was finally able to get a look at her. He was not one to admire appearances and he would deny even to himself such thoughts, but she was stunning. She had thick sleek red hair like fire and dark forest green eyes. Her vibrant red lipstick stood out against her pale skin, drawing attention to her impish smile. As he looked at her she glanced along the table to wave at her new colleagues and met his eyes.

There was a brief press upon his mind and he glared with blatant hostility at her attempt at Legilimency. She winked and pressed again, her smile wider. Was she goading him? One more press, another wink, and he finally pushed back. It was clear what she wanted and her mind was open and ready for him. A memory pushed to the front of her mind immediately.

_She was standing in front of a mirror, smiling coyly. Even though he was seated in the Great Hall, merely watching this strange memory turned message, it still made the fine hairs on the back of his neck stand up. When she spoke it was with a thick Irish brogue, with a hint of Scotland._

_ "I honestly didn't think you would. Meet me in my office immediately after the feast. I must have a very important conversation with you, Professor Snape. Spy to spy."_

He was pushed from her mind, her Occlumency shields resembling a thick vast forest like a maze. If she did not want him in her mind again he did not think he would stand a chance at it. She was as skilled as he was.

"Thank you, Professors." Dumbledore smiled as the pair reclaimed their seats. "Lastly, a change in curriculum has been made quite recently and so I am afraid letters have not had a chance to go out. As of this year Muggle Studies will be a mandatory study to all students who do not already have prior experience with muggles."

A great deal of murmuring went around the hall and there were many cries of indignation from the Slytherin table.

"Did you know about this?" Snape hissed at McGonagall. She turned, just as surprised as him, and shook her head.

"He never said anything to me."

"It has long been debated over the past eight years and a decision was finally reached. This has been deemed to be in the best interest of promoting positive relations with Muggles. And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!"

Snape knew that was a blatant lie and wondered just what the Headmaster was playing at.

Snape strode down the corridors his mind a whirlwind of thoughts. O'Connor had called herself a spy, was a master Occulemens, and currently occupied a position teaching a subject that was now mandatory. The whole situation reeked of Dumbledore's usual meddling. What the hell was the old fool up to now? He hated how the man never put his full faith in anyone; never telling his pawns everything there was to know.

_"It is unwise to put all of one's eggs in the same basket, Severus."_

He scowled.

"Old fool."

* * *

O'Connor was waiting for him outside her rooms when he arrived. She wore a far less unnerving smile than in her memory and gestured inside. He curled his lip in something more closely resembling a sneer than a smile and stepped through the door. The large window draped with dark blue curtains on the far wall showed the western horizon and a large desk was situated before it. Two small leather chairs were situated in front. On the left wall a large fireplace was flanked by two plush chairs and a table. The door to her personal rooms was open to his right and there was a Muggle record player.

"Since magic disrupts electronics I had to turn my favorite music into records so I can still listen to it."

The heavy bolt of the door slid into place as she spoke and his palms were immediately sweaty. He let his wand slide into his palm and turned to face her. Just what the hell was she up to? She was smiling innocently and leaning against the door, fingers laced behind her back.

"Just what are you planning on doing, O'Connor?" His tone dared her to try something.

"You can relax. I'm not planning anything."

She smiled and pushed off the door, but didn't approach. Instead she began to change. Her impressive height, at least 5' 11", reduced itself by at least six inches. Vibrant red hair darkened to thick shining ebony and her eyes turned a stormy grey. Soon she was shrinking even further. She was barely five feet tall, her hair chestnut and her eyes brown. Then, suddenly, she was a tall buxom blonde with pale blue eyes, her chest straining against her robes. Finally he was staring at himself, his shoulders stretching the seams of her clothes.

"You're a metamorphmagus."

His doppelganger smiled. Somehow when she did it, it didn't seem so out of place on his face.

"That's right." She returned to herself and moved to the table in front of the fireplace. There was a tray with a small silver cloche. "I hope you like Irish shortbread. It's all I have for now."

"I have no interest in your food. Why did you ask me here?"

"Straight to the point. I expected nothing less from you, but hospitality is in my nature." She crossed her arms, one of the chairs rotated, and she sat facing him. Snape frowned. Had she just…

"As you've probably already guessed, Dumbledore has recruited me to be a part of his resistance group; to spy for him."

"He doesn't trust me to handle such duties on my own."

"Oh, no. He trusts you implicitly, unlike myself." They stared each other down for a moment. "Despite my own feelings on your loyalty I have agreed to help him and work with you whenever the need arises. Dumbledore is worried that Harry Potter's attendance in three years will be a catalyst and he wants to be prepared."

"Why not wait until then? Why has he called you here now?"

"Other than the fact that it would make my presence here suspicious, he wants me to have an established and comfortable routine here. I will be knowledgeable of the castle and its inhabitants; their behaviors and routines. Should anything strange take place I would then be able to spot it much easier than if I was new." She uncrossed her legs and re-crossed them, leaning her head on her left fist. "There was of course a condition for me to take up the teaching position he wanted me to."

"So I was right. You are behind Muggle Studies being a mandatory course."

"Does that bother you?" She gave him a haughty look. He scowled at her.

"No. I was merely curious about what caused the sudden change and why he lied about it." She hummed gently and sat back in her chair. "What else is there? I know you haven't called me here just to let me know you're working as his spy."

"You're right. I want to establish an unquestionable routine that would allow us to exchange information. If we start one right off the bat there will be no reason anyone should look at it as being anything more that it appears." She waved a hand at her desk and a black oriental tea set began making something that smelled of lemon balm and magnolia bark. His eyes widened.

"You can use wandless magic and _without_ incantation."

The set crashed to the floor halfway to the table beside her. She was on her feet immediately and staring at him with a fierce intensity. Her mouth opened and closed twice before she turned from him and threaded her fingers through her hair.

"I thought maybe I missed something when the chair had turned, but I was right the first time."

She threw him a long-suffering look over her shoulder.

"You didn't want me to see that. You don't want anyone to know."

"No. I don't. I haven't even told Dumbledore. I don't even _want _Dumbledore to know. It's advantageous for me to keep such a secret to myself."

"You're worried I'm going to tell someone."

"I want to ask you to keep this to yourself. Don't even tell Dumbledore. However, after just telling you I don't trust you I realize I have no right to ask that."

He sneered at her.

"You're right. You don't." She glared. "However, I will keep this to myself; even from Dumbledore. Though, I must question your usefulness as a spy. You can't even manage to be self-aware enough to hide such a secret in the company of someone you don't trust."

_ It's going to feel good to be the one keeping secrets from the old man for once._

She looked shocked at his agreement then glared at his insult.

"Now, what is this _plan_ of yours?"

"Thank you, Snape." She growled. "I want go with the story that I suffer almost daily from extremely debilitating migraines. In an effort to get relief I've turned to the _Apsque_ potion."

"That is an extremely dangerous and extremely difficult potion to make."

"Yes, but if I'm held up in my rooms unable to deal with sounds and lights, sick, and in extreme pain for several days out of the week without it; then I'd probably be willing to take the chance."

"How would this allow us to exchange information, exactly?"

"Well, since it's dangerous to the taker if prepared wrong and is difficult to brew, it would stand to reason that a skilled potion master would want to be there for the first dose of the batch. It's makes enough for a week of daily doses, correct? You come to my office every Monday to observe the first dose so you can help if anything should go wrong. If anything _were_ to happen it would do so within the first twenty minutes, right? That gives us enough time to speak of anything we would need to."

"Clever."

"I'm only sorry you'll have to brew such a difficult potion every Sunday."

"Don't lie to me. I'm sure you find it a fitting consolation for having to work with someone so _untrustworthy_."

"Don't act offended; as if you cared about my opinion of you."

He gave her a look of pure derision.

"Fine. It is a suitable plan. I will brew the potion every Sunday and meet you here Mondays after the first set of classes. I have a study period to watch over. I can afford to be missing for twenty minutes. I'm sure you're class would survive that long without you. What about tomorrow?"

"It would be good to start right away. We can say I had someone else make it. Someone would still need to observe me after all."

"Fine." He stared at her for a moment. "How did you and Dumbledore come to this arrangement? How do you know each other?"

"Now that would be telling. I think I've given away enough of my secrets to you tonight." He scowled but did not press her further. "Now, I'll give you the incantation that protects my quarters. It's _Praesidium._ Once the door is locked with that no one can get in or out and no one can hear what's going on inside. Only you and I know it, only I can give out the word, and it must be done in this room. If you tell anyone and they use it, it will not respond to them."

"That is quite advanced magic." His eyebrows rose appreciatively despite his disdain for her.

"Well I had a very good teacher."

He felt there was more to it than that, but knew she would not elaborate.

"If there is nothing else then, I will take my leave."

"No. Nothing."

He inclined his head slightly and turned for the door. The lock slid open with a heavy clunk at the wave of his hand. O'Connor stared wide-eyed at him as he swept out the door with a swish of his cloak and a haughty smirk. She dropped into her chair with a defeated huff as the door swung shut. Note to self. Severus Snape is not one to be outdone. She cast a forlorn look at her shattered tea set and frowned as she thought of her two major fuckups that night.

"Perhaps the old girl's onto something after all."


	2. September 5, 1988

To say that she was surprised would be an understatement. O'Connor was sure that their weekly meetings would be silent brooding affairs with the two of them shooting each other glares while they thought the other wasn't looking. She had no desire to be friendly with a man who was surely biding his time until his master's return. After last night's declaration she couldn't imagine he would _want_ to talk to her.

In a strange turn of events Snape had surprised her by asking about her abilities as a metamorphmagus. Apparently there was a fifth year Hufflepuff girl who shared her gift. He had noticed that Nymphadora's emotions tended to affect her appearance and was curious as to how she planned to deal with that. Did she keep the disguise 24/7 and was there a chance her real identity could be discovered?

"You've spoken to Dumbledore. Did he tell you who I really am?"

"He did not. He believes the fewer people who know who you really are the better. I suppose I cannot argue that."

"Did you guess that I was using a false identity or did he offer the information?"

"I asked. Being what you are it was incredibly likely. I wanted to know who I was really working with and he denied me."

She hummed lightly and sat back in her seat. Snape dropped into one of the leather chairs and leaned against one of the arms, fingers laced.

"Are you going to answer my question?"

"If I must." She reached forward and took what looked like a Samosa from the tray on her desk before pushing it towards him. A brief wave and the restored tea set began making tea. He frowned at her and she shrugged. "It's what I do.

"Anyway, you were wondering about my abilities. Yes. I will be keeping this appearance 24/7. No, I'm not worried about revealing myself. I've trained rigorously to be able to keep this form for as long as necessary. Even if I'm knocked unconscious I will not change back. As for my emotions, I haven't had them affect my appearance in over a decade. Trust me when I say that wasn't easy."

"Oh?" One of his eyebrows arched gracefully.

"I have been known to have a bit of a temper."

"Good to know."

"Any other prying you'd like to do?"

"I think that will suffice for now."

"Good. I need to crack on then." Her door clicked open. Now that he knew about it she seemed to have no issue sticking to her wandless magic in his presence. He stood smoothly and followed her out the door, pondering the woman that was Abigail O'Conner.


	3. September 26, 1988

She should have known things were going too smoothly to last. They had made it three weeks with minimal conversation that was at least cordial when it did occur. Then she had to go and make a complete haymes of it; and boy did he eat her head off. She always was too stubborn to let things go. It wasn't like she didn't have a good reason. No one knew _why_ Snape switched sides, and they were just supposed to take Dumbledore's word for it. Anyone would have to be daft not to question it. Too bad she didn't stay the noble course.

"So why did you switch sides, Snape?"

His form went rigid where he sat before the fire. The room seemed to drop a few degrees.

"I don't believe that is any concern of yours. Suffice to say I did and leave it at that."

She scoffed and dropped into the other chair.

"I'm just supposed to take your word for it. Like no one has ever told a lie to save their ass before? I don't think so." He glared at her. "So what happened? Did you join and see what they were really about? It all got a little too real for you when they started slaughtering innocent muggles for fun, hm? Did you think you were just going to tout your wizard supremacy and rally for the end of the Statute of Secrecy and that would be it?"

Snape slammed his book shut and shot to his feet. She waved her hand furiously and another ward settled over the door with enough energy to rattle the wood in its frame. O'Connor left her seat and prowled around the chair like a predator stalking her prey. Her work persona had kicked in now. He glared down at her wild eyed and dangerous.

"I despise people who think they're better than others because they have even a little bit of power or wealth. We have magic therefore we're better. Muggles have survived millennia with nothing more than their wits and ingenuity. They should be applauded for all that they have done and come up with. No magic to just do everything for them."

Her eyes were as wild as his now. She finally had a Death Eater right before her to take her anger out on; to teach the error of their ways. To bring down a notch.

"Wizarding kind thinks they're so dissimilar, so evolved. I've seen the way your ministry and MACUSA treats magical creatures. Disgusting. Voldemort and you Death Eaters. Surely you realize your similarities to Hitler and the Nazis. Again, you're no different than muggles. So what was it Snape? Did you need to put down others to make yourself feel better, to feel like you had control, had power? Or were you too much of a coward to stand against him that you decided it was better with than against?"

There was a bang and she stumbled back with a cry, her arm burning with the force of his stinging hex. His eyes were like a wild animals and his face was white, patches of red high up on his cheeks.

"Don't call me a coward!" Two steps brought him almost nose-to-nose with her. "I see through you. What is it O'Connor? Perhaps it is you that is the coward. I don't remember you being a part of the Order the first time. One Death Eater all by himself isn't too frightening is it? It's much easier spouting your self-righteous harangue at me than putting your life on the line during the war, isn't it? Craven witch!"

The slap echoed around the room and Snape stood frozen with his head turned to the side. O'Connor looked shocked at what she had done and covered her mouth with a shaking hand. She didn't try to stop him and turned away as he grabbed his bag and left the room, her door slamming against the wall with enough force to break the latch. Dark green eyes framed with glistening lashes stared into the fire.

"You really make a holy show of it sometimes, Abigail. Way to go."


	4. October 3-12, 1988

O'Connor was surprised to say the least when Snape showed up the following Monday for their usual meeting. She was in the middle of showing her first years washing machines from a few different decades when there was a rough knock on the door. When she'd opened it to reveal the dour Potions Master she froze to her spot and just stared at him. He'd glared at her before turning and asking if she wanted her potion or not. His expression had been so hostile her students had urged her not to go lest she be poisoned.

"Now, now. Let's not talk that way about the Professor. Go ahead and look at the machines. I'll be back shortly."

Her heeled boots echoed in the quiet corridor as she followed him to her office. He was holding the door open and once she was inside he slammed it shut and leaned against it. She had stared at him, but he refused to meet her eye. The bag of faux potions sat on the table by the door. Was he just going to lean there the entire twenty minutes and ignore her? Fine. She couldn't care less.

O'Connor went to her desk and sat down, reaching for one of the empire biscuits sitting on the tray. She almost pushed it forward, stopped, and slammed the cloche down on them. Damn bastard didn't deserve them anyway. He probably wouldn't appreciate them either, the subtle and delicate taste of apple cider with the sweet but tangy apple jam sandwiched between two melt-in-your-mouth shortbread cookies.

She looked up at him over the cloche. He was staring into the fire looking irritable and she felt a sliver of guilt dig at her insides. No! There was no reason for her to feel that way. It was his choice to go join the Death Eaters. So he deserved to be made to face that choice. _Except that's not why you did it;_ nagged the little voice at the back of her mind. She shook her head to displace the thought.

"Why are you here? I would have thought you'd stay far away after last week."

"Unlike some I can maintain a professional demeanor. We have a job to do. That's the only reason I'm here."

She glared and swiveled her chair to face the window.

_Fuck him._

10/10/1988

The next week he was back again, following the exact routine of the previous week. He slammed her door, set the bag down, and leaned against the door. She didn't even touch the tray of ginger biscuits, instead crossing the room to stare out the window. Her feelings of guilt had grown over the last week and she was determined to ignore them until they went away. It was extremely hard with him in the room.

Mealtimes were torture. It was a mental and physical battle not to look at him. He hadn't so much as looked at her since their argument. If they passed each other in the halls he gave her a wide berth. In staff meeting he acted as if she didn't exist and never acknowledge anything she said. It was getting to the point that the rest of the staff was taking notice. Sybil had given her a look and she'd flat out ignored the woman.

_I don't understand this. I have no reason to feel guilty!_

She knew that was a lie. She'd been replaying the fight in her head for the last two damn weeks. At first she had just wanted to know why he switched sides. There was no way she could trust him without knowing.

_ Plus you're a nosy fuck too._

Perhaps if she had goaded him a bit he might break down and tell her. Of course that wasn't what had happened. Her personal anger towards Voldemort's ideals had taken over and she had gone on a holy joe rant about not only their views but wizarding kinds behavior in general. There was something else too. Something she had been too wrapped up in herself to notice at the time. At the very end of her tirade something had flickered in his eyes so briefly that she wouldn't have even realized it was there if she hadn't been replaying the memory over and over.

_Shame._

She turned suddenly and struck the cloche from her desk. It bounced off the wall and clattered to the floor, biscuits spilling across the room. Anger at him, her, and the world bubbled beneath the surface and she glared up at the man in question. Snape stood wand out and watching her warily. She was wrong and she was going to have to apologize to him, a man she didn't like at all. A man she may have been wrong about. Now she just had to swallow her pride and hope he would even give her a chance to do it.

"_Get out._"

She just couldn't do it _yet_.

10/12/1988

The sun was barely peeking over the horizon as O'Connor jogged around the castle. It was cool and a mist drifted over the grounds like a blanket. Alone in the early morning stillness she was able to organize her thoughts and calm her mind. She could feel the earth and the castle and their individual magics. It was like a balm and calmed her emotions. Like her, Snape often walked around the castle in the mornings before breakfast. Today she was finally going to apologize.

_If he'll let me. There he is._

She put on an extra burst of speed to catch up to him. When she called out to him he ignored her and picked up the pace.

"Snape, please. I just want to talk."

His jog turned into a quick jog. When he heard her match his pace he broke into a run. His long legs carried him effortlessly across the lawn with an almost easy grace. She glared.

"Will you just listen to me?"

Soon they were flying over the grounds and she was surprised at how fast he was. Sure she had noticed his seemingly fit appearance; the lean muscle tucked away beneath the frock coat and billowing black cloak. He didn't strike her as one to work out, but it seemed he at least kept himself in shape.

_I suppose that makes sense if you're going to spy on the most dangerous of wizarding kind._

They tore down the hill towards the lake and she'd had enough. Lengthening her legs and adding muscle she surged forward and tackled him. They landed hard and rolled down the hill, grappling the whole way down. Snape fought hard to get away from her, but in the end she spelled his hands his feet together. He struggled so violently she was worried he'd hurt himself.

"Will you just calm down and listen to me?!"

She pinned him beneath her and pressed his wrists to his chest. He gave her a wild eyed look like a fox caught in a trap. It was so distraught it almost pained her. Then she realized where they were and a memory occurred to her.

_Dammit. How do you always manage to find a way to muck things up in some way or another?_

"I'm just trying to apologize!"

He didn't look reassured and bared his teeth in a growl.

"Get off me O'Connor!"

"Just wait! You don't have to forgive me, but I want to apologize regardless. I was wrong. I shouldn't have taken my anger out on you like that. Even if you did something that was vile and deserved repercussion I wasn't doing it for that reason. I took my personal anger out on you and projected my own personal shame as well."

He stilled for a moment and stared at her looking curious.

"You were right. I was a coward, but not for the reasons you may think. By the time I finally sorted myself out the war was over and I'd done nothing to help while so many other people put their lives on the line. So I took my anger at Voldemort's ideals, wizarding kind's arrogance, and my own shame and pushed it all on you. It was wrong and I'm sorry. I don't ask that you forgive me, but if there's anything I can do to make up for it I'll do it."

She released his wrists, lifted the spells, and climbed off his waist. He sat up slowly, staring at her as if she were some strange animal. They stayed like that for several minutes before he finally spoke.

"Anything?" She glared and he smirked.

"Don't push it."

"So much for trying to make it up to me."

She released an angry huff and stormed off towards the castle.

"O'Connor."

His call made her stop, but she didn't turn.

"Meet me next to Hagrid's hut at sun down Saturday night. You can carry the potion ingredients I collect in the Forbidden Forest."


	5. October 15, 1988

"Abigail? Are you not having dinner?"

Minerva gave her a curious look, taking in her muggle attire. She typically wore more muggle clothing than wizarding. Robes were a bit cumbersome compared to slacks and a blouse. More often than not she was a bit eccentric in her attire, sometimes even wearing something steam punk without going _too_ outlandish. If she wasn't doing that she was dressed for comfort. Just the other day she'd worn a long sweater shirt with a decorative leather belt and a pair of leggings. Now she was wearing hiking boots with jeans and a thick oversized sweatshirt.

Her fellow staff members didn't seem to care about her attire, but the more traditional ones like Minerva and Snape, Bathsheda and Silvanus, tended to frown when they saw it. None of them, not even Snape surprisingly, ever said anything about it. Albus on the other hand seemed to greatly enjoy her attire; especially the steam punk. She smiled and readjusted the bag on her shoulders.

"I'm heading into the Forbidden Forest with Snape. He's asked me to help him gather ingredients."

"Severus _asked_ you to help him?"

Abigail grinned sheepishly.

"I may have been a bit of an arse to him a few weeks ago. Now comes the payback. I'm to be his pack mule for the night."

"Why so late?"

"He said it's much easier to find unicorn hair in the dark."

"I see. Well I trust you two will be careful. That forest is dangerous even for grown witches and wizards."

"Yes mother. I promise." Minerva scoffed, but she could see the smile the older woman tried to hide. "See you at breakfast, Minerva. Night!"

"Good night dear."

* * *

Snape was waiting for her when she arrived at Hagrid's hut. The half-giant was sitting outside whittling wood and Fang was doing circles around the potion's master. He snuffled the man's hands and leapt up, putting his paws on his waist. Hagrid was hiding a smile in his beard at the pup's antics. Abigail hid her own grin behind a hand and called the puppy over.

"Tell that sour man. I'm just a puppy. I just wanna play."

He scowled at her and held out two bags of jars.

"They're labeled so do try to match the ingredients to the correct container."

She rolled her eyes and took them.

"I don't know if _you_ ate but I brought some food. _If_ you feel like having any."

He just frowned and headed into the forest.

"His loss." Hagrid said. "I for one will have your cooking any day."

"Thanks Hagrid. I'll have lamb pie for my Sunday lunch tomorrow. Filius was supper excited when I told him about it."

"That sounds lovely, Abigail! If I'd have known we'd have Sunday dinners like this I'd have asked Dumbledore hire you years ago."

She smiled and laughed.

"It's what I do."

"Are you helping or not!" Snape called. She rolled her eyes and saluted Hagrid.

"Duty calls." She feigned a hunch and drug her left foot; adopting a gravelly voice. "Yes master! Coming master!"

* * *

The forest was still and quiet that night, the only sound the dry undergrowth crunching beneath their boots. They were fairly far in now. Snape had walked for almost half an hour before finally stopping at a patch of Bursting Mushrooms. He'd handed her a small knife and the two of them spent the next fifteen minutes carefully collecting the small button like mushrooms before moving on. For two hours they worked in a companionable silence, collecting various ingredients throughout the forest.

She was quite surprised at the turn of events. They didn't speak more than was necessary. It was usually for him to instruct her in how best to collect an ingredient, or draw attention to another patch of plants. Despite that it wasn't a tense silence. It was comfortable and easy; lacking any of the hostility they'd held for each other just days ago. O'Connor was almost tempted to say the night was enjoyable. They were in her wheelhouse after all.

"I think that will do for plant life for the night." Snape stood and brushed the soil from his hand. O'Connor shrunk the potion bags to fit in her shoulder pack and checked her watch. It was just after nine thirty.

"Do you usually have trouble with the unicorn hair?"

"There is an area that they frequent not far from here. They often leave a fair amount behind."

They walked in silence for a time with Snape periodically glancing at her from the corner his eye. She gestured and he looked away.

"Ask your question." She prompted.

"You said I was right when I called you a coward, but not for the reason I thought. What did you mean by that?" She sighed heavily and stuffed her hands in her back pockets.

"I knew you were going to ask that eventually. This is where I become a hypocrite and tell you that I'm not sharing." She blew a strand a hair out of her eyes. "Rest assured I won't ask again about your reasons for switching sides. If I can't share I don't expect you to."

"_Can't_ share or _won't_?"

Her eyes said she'd stuck her foot in her mouth again. She seemed to do that a lot around him. Before either of them could comment further an equine scream echoed in the distance and two Unicorns burst out of the darkness heading straight for them. They threw themselves in opposite directions out of the way. O'Connor sat up and shoved her hair out of her face.

"What the hell was that about?"

Snape held his wand aloft trying to see what had startled them. She copied him, but there was nothing there. He frowned and started forward.

"Something's not right. I can feel it. There's something moving in there."

"And pray tell how can you _feel_ that, O'Connor?"

"I just can. Don't worry about the how."

He sneered at her over his shoulder and headed into the small grove. As he passed his wand over the ground and the surrounding shrubs she could see scores of glittering strands all over the place. There were even two horns that had been shed. Snape smirked at the find, but continued to scour the clearing. He cast a few spells and examined the area, but couldn't find anything.

"Whatever spooked them isn't here now."

"Seems like it."

O'Connor shoved the two horns in her bag and began collecting hair. Snape turned sharply at the snap of a branch and they whirled to face where they'd entered the glade. The area appeared to be empty. Even so the distinct feeling that there was a person just beyond their field of vision, watching them back, was certain. Whoever they were they gave off a distinct predatory feel. Then it was gone as if it had never been there. Snape didn't like it. There was something wrong about the whole event.

"I think that's enough for tonight. Let's get back to the castle, O'Conner. O'Connor?"

The woman was standing still as a statue staring skyward and looking white as a sheet. Something glistened on her shoulder and another drop just missed his face. He snapped his eyes upward to see a mammoth spider-web spanning the grove like a dome. In the center was a massive Acromantula. Above it were two smaller ones crawling closer. O'Connor made a choking sound.

"No sudden movements." Snape hissed quietly. "When I tell you to run head back the way we came as fast as you can. Understand? O'Connor? O'Connor?!"

He reached out, taking her bicep in a pincer like grip, and was unprepared for the shriek of terror that left her mouth. She flailed like a wild animal striking out at him and catching his cheek.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" His grip faltered and she stumbled back before taking off to his left. "O'Connor! Stop!"

The spider lunged.

"Incendio!"

Unearthly shrieks filled the air and he took off after his crazed colleague. She was still screaming as she ran, fighting with webs and unicorn hair that had stuck to her. The woman was in absolute hysterics. It was difficult to equate her with the sharp-tongued, iron-willed witch he was used to. If he didn't do something soon she'd have them lost or entangled in something worse.

_Hell she could be leading us right to their nest!_

"Stupefy!"

She dropped like a stone and Snape slid to a stop beside her. He turned quickly to see if the spiders were close and found them fifty yards back, climbing high to escape the fire. It reflected in their many eyes and he could tell they were fixated on them. Angry spitting and hissing filled the air.

"Stupid woman!" He knelt beside her and rolled her over. There was a dirt and moss stuck to her face and a small cut over her left eyebrow. It wasn't serious. They could deal with it later. "Rennervate."

She groaned and turned her head.

"Wake up O'Connor! We need to move!" She opened her eyes blearily, gasped, and tried to sit up. He forced her shoulders to the ground.

"Stop! You need to be calm and focused right now. Can you do that?!" Her eyes were wild for a moment as she presumably searched for the spiders. "They're back there, but they will be coming for us at any moment. We need to move, but you can't just run off in any direction like a mad woman. I need you to be levelheaded right now. Can you do that?"

He gripped her shoulders tightly and she closed her eyes using the feeling to ground herself. She nodded and he pulled her harshly to her feet. Snape didn't trust her. It was clear that she suffered from Arachnophobia and giant spiders certainly weren't helping their case. He gripped her wrist so she couldn't take off on him again and pulled her in the direction he knew Hagrid's hut to be.

They hadn't gone far when several shrieks went up behind them. The forest floor shook slightly as the biggest spider landed and they could feel the ground tremble beneath their feet as the beast gave chase. Several branches snapped and the trees groaned as the smaller ones followed through the trees. O'Connor whimpered pitifully and moved a little faster. Snape ignored her and tried to focus on the ground in front of him. There was a drop off somewhere nearby with a large hollow under a massive set of tree roots. If he could get them there they might be able hide until the spiders passed or mount a counter attack.

Webs splattered against the tree to their right and he pulled her left, throwing two spells over his shoulder. He desperately wanted to send some fire their way, but he couldn't risk burning the whole forest down. His fingers tightened on O'Connor's wrist. She needed to do something.

"I have to watch where we're going. You need to hold them off!"

She nodded numbly and waved her wand overhead in a wide circle. There was a great crash behind them and the air was filled with the scent of greenery. The smell of pine and heather was so cloying he almost gagged. Thistle and various mushroom, magical and non-magical, burst into massive clusters all around them. He dodged around the groupings wondering just what the hell she had done.

_Where did she learn such a thing? I've never heard of such a spell!_

"Shit." She gasped. "Too much."

"How close are they now?"

He could feel the faint tremble that ran through her.

"They've fallen back quite a ways. They're going to have to go higher or around."

"Does it look like they will?"

"They're trying." She moaned in a high pitch. "There's more coming from your left."

"Damn it. What's going on?" He'd never had such a problem in all the times he'd come into the forest for ingredients. The spiders were usually much further in. Now they seemed almost mad with a need to get at them.

"There's a drop off a little further ahead. We should be able to hide out there and figure out our next move."

One or even two spiders weren't a problem, but three or more was dangerous. You were likely to get caught in a web before you could incapacitate them all. With O'Connor practically useless and a liability he needed the element of surprise.

"No Snape, I think it's closer." She suddenly said. "I think… No! Stop!"

He felt her pull back and then the ground disappeared under his feet. Their momentum carried them forward and down the steep incline. Rocks and roots and thorny bushes struck out at them catching and tearing their clothes. They landed in a breathless heap and for a moment neither of them could move. Finally O'Connor pushed herself to her hands and knees.

"Snape, are you all right?" He groaned and a hiss of breath escaped from between clenched teeth. She crawled over to him. His face was tight and his body rigid. Just looking at him though she couldn't tell what was wrong.

"What is it? What happened?"

"I dislocated my knee." He growled and sat up. His face turned white with the effort and sweat glistened on his forehead. "We need to keep going."

"Not to offend, but can you?"

"Does it seem like I have a choice?" He snapped. She couldn't say he was wrong and snatched up her fallen wand. He'd somehow managed to keep a hold on his. "There should be a massive tree nearby. We can regroup there."

A sudden crash at the top of the hill told them the spiders had broken past her barriers. O'Connor scrambled to her feet and it quickly became obvious that Snape's leg would not support him. In unspoken agreement she supported most of his weight and practically dragged him into the hollow at the base of the tree. By the time they settled in and put out their wands he was ghostly pale tinged with green.

"This is the first and last time I'm going into this forest with you." Snape groused.

"Shut up. It's not my fault they were there in the first place."

She moved to the entrance and placed her hand on the roots. Snape was having trouble focusing at this point, the edges of his vision darkening slightly, but he was sure of what he saw. The wood grew and shifted until they were incased in a massive cage of roots. Even if the spiders saw them they could not get in without a great deal of effort. Heather grew over the gaps and the scent was almost overpowering.

_Who is this woman?_

"Episkey should work, right?"

_Rhetorical questions should be outlawed._ Snape thought as she cast the spell and his knee realigned itself. It took everything he had not to cry out and for a moment everything went black. When he could see her again she was shaking like a leaf and pointing her wand through one of the holes in the roots. Something was screaming and hissing as it flailed around outside.

_That's right. We're hiding from the spiders._

After her earlier reaction he was shocked to see her firing off spells at them. A well placed Everte Statum sent one of the spiders sailing. He stared at her, surprised. She seemed to be doing all right now that she had some semblance of control back. Snape pushed himself up and gripped his wand. Moving carefully lest he jar his knee or risk startling her he moved to one of the openings.

Only two spiders were standing outside now. A third was stumbling away up the hill, and two more lay immobilized in the distance. Their eyes were swiveling madly in her wandlight. The remaining arachnids were warily watching their hiding spot. He was taken aback that she had left them alive. Did she know Hagrid cared for them? He certainly hadn't had time to tell her.

"Any bright ideas? They're quite adept at dodging. Those two will be regaining their legs soon."

"I may have an idea."

He pointed his wand at the massive heather flowers wondering yet again where she'd learned such magic. She wasn't making them larger with an engorgement charm. They had grown out of the soil to massive proportions like any plant would.

"Avifors."

The flowers swayed and twisted themselves into massive white doves. He needed them even bigger.

"Engorgio." They doubled in size and he smirked. "Oppugno."

Like missiles the giant birds began dive bombing the spiders.

"They won't kill them but they also won't last long. We need to move." She nodded and with her whole body trebling helped him to his feet. Carefully and quietly they exited the roots and snuck off through the forest. He glared at her and promised a life of misery if she told anyone about it.

"You're too prideful, Snape." She panted. Her trembling was slowly reducing to mild shivers. "Everyone needs help sometimes."

"Yes well we wouldn't be in this mess if you had just kept your head."

"I'm scarlet about it enough all ready, all right?" She snapped. "I can't help it. I've been that way since I was a child. It doesn't matter how big or small. They all scare me shitless."

"Scarlet?"

"Super embarrassed." He nodded in understanding.

"Frankly, I'm amazed you got it together enough to fight them off in the way that you did."

"Well when I fixed your leg you went even kinda ashen and just dropped. I had to do something or else we were both done for. They were big enough to get through those branches eventually."

"So you _can_ maintain control when it counts. I'm shocked." She rolled her eyes and gave him a sour look. "I've never seen magic like yours before. You grew plants straight out of the ground and to incredible proportions. Is that an Irish ability?"

"Not entirely. No."

"You are hiding a great deal from us, Miss O'Connor."

"Yes. And for some reason I keep revealing bits and pieces of myself in front of _you._" An image of the smashed tea set and Sybil's words flashed in her mind. She eyed him skeptically. He was watching her with the same scrutinizing expression.

"Perhaps if you can yet prove yourself to really be on our side, I will tell you more."


	6. Hogwarts PD

A little over a week had passed since the incident in the Forbidden Forest and Snape had eventually stopped glaring at her at meal times and in the hallways. He had conceded it wasn't really her fault. That hadn't stopped him from amusing himself with her fear. It seemed to be his form of retaliation for his wounded pride. The man really hadn't appreciated having to be half carried through the woods back to his rooms.

_So sensitive. Not that he doesn't have reason to be I guess._

She adjusted her blouse and vest as she observed her first years playing with some muggle appliances. They were making their own breakfast today. Across the room an older student who was a muggle-born was assisting for the first portion of the class. Snape would be there shortly for their usual meeting and she couldn't leave a bunch of eleven year olds alone with electrical appliances they'd never operated before.

It was nearly halfway through the class when Snape finally showed up. He was wearing his typical scowl and gestured impatiently for her to come with him. She pulled on a cloak similar to his and followed. Her heels clacked across the stone floor as she jogged lightly to catch up to him. Something seemed to have put the man in a worse mood than usual. Hopefully he didn't try to take it out on her. She really didn't feel like arguing.

_Best get it out of the way then._

"Ok, what's the story? You seem even moodier than usual."

She leaned against her desk and picked up the tray of chocolate and ricotta cassatelles. As always she offered and he rolled his eyes.

"If I take one will you finally stop asking?"

"Probably not." She grinned. His lips parted in a grimace. "What do you have against my food anyway? It's not like I'm going to poison you."

"No. I'm sure if you were to try to do away with me you'd find a manticore or some other giant creature to chase me across the grounds." He surprised her by taking one of the pastries. It took great will power not to gawk at him and see if he liked it.

"So? Out with it. What's got your knickers in a twist?"

"You are aware of the missing cats and owls that are plaguing the school, correct?"

"Yes. One of the girls in my class just now was quite upset."

"It seems the list of missing creatures is growing." He placed a piece of parchment on her desk. Chickens and roosters, horses, reptiles, and dogs have all gone missing from Hogsmeade."

"What?" She snatched up the paper and scanned the list of residents and their missing pets. "So it's not just the school then. This could be a bigger problem than we originally thought."

"Yes. Albus would like for us to take a look into it."

"Us? What are we? Hogwarts PD? Shouldn't this be handled by the ministry's people?"

"You are "ministry people"." He said. "I think he was quite amused with himself. He suggested it because we did _so well_ together in the forest."

"I'm sure he was."

"You play chess?" He stood in front of her bookcase inspecting her collection of books about wards and spell detection. On the shelf below them were her books on Irish Folklore and Magical Creatures and her few wizarding games. His eyes rested on the Gobstone set.

"I do. My grandfather on my mother's side is a fan. He insisted I learn." He nodded lightly, his eyes still on the wizard's marble game. "Did you play Gobstones?"

"My mother did." She was surprised at the softness of his reply. He gave himself an imperceptible shake and lifted her chessboard. "Do you have any skill in the game?"

"Would you like to find out?" She smirked. "Tonight after dinner. My office or yours?"

* * *

Five days later it became obvious that the missing animal cases were a much bigger problem than they thought. Silvanus had come to Dumbledore first thing Saturday morning and reported that overnight his Runespoors had gone missing; and it didn't stop there. The centaurs of the Forbidden Forest had been waiting for Hagrid when he woke up. Overnight someone had taken several Kelpie, two Demiguise, two Occamy, and raided four eagle nests.

"It can't just be one person." O'Connor said. "To be able to take so many creatures in one night, they had to have had help."

Snape gave a hum of non-committal.

"What? You don't agree?" He sighed heavily and glared at her from the corner of his eye.

"I am _trying_ to be understanding of your fear. However, if you continue to bump into I may just tie you to a tree and leave you there until I am finished."

"Oh. Sorry."

She grinned sheepishly and backed off a few paces. They were back in the Forbidden Forest and looking for anything they could find about the missing animals. If it weren't so important she never would have agreed to it. Snape never would have let her hear the end of it if she backed out, either. As it was he had teased her for most of the day before they went out. Karma was a bitch though. She'd spent most of the trip practically walking on top of him while trying to look in every direction at once.

"It's still light out, O'Connor. They'll be bedded down until sunset." He sneered.

"I know that. It doesn't make it any easier to shake the fear." She pulled her duster tighter and crossed her arms. "Do you think the person Firenze saw may be connected to the guy we saw in the Unicorn glade?"

"It is possible." He gestured forward. "There. That's the area he saw him in."

It was a relatively small clearing, surrounded by small shrubs and littered with small Boom Berry bushes. Snape held up a hand to stop her and raised his wand.

"Homenum Revelio." They waited a few moments, but no one was revealed to them. He walked to the center of the glade and revolved slowly. "Appare Vestigium."

Gold powder erupted from the end of his wand and settled over the area. Several pairs of footprints appeared alongside some golden squares. She guessed they were the boxes the poor creatures had been stuffed into. Snape placed his wand against the prints and muttered _Revelio._ Three figures holding various creatures appeared and they watched as they shoved them in cages and shrunk them to fit in their pockets.

"Him."

They surprised each other by pointing out the same man at the same moment. He stood at the very edge of the clearing in shadow and appeared to be giving directions to the other three. Snape circled the golden figure trying to take in as much detail as he could. O'Connor judged the man to be just under six feet, but built like a brick shit house.

Something shifted in the underbrush and they both fired off a spell. O'Connor's went high and to the right. Snape's took a chunk out of a tree just to the left of their observer. The stranger was coated in a chameleon spell. They blended seamlessly with their background until they moved. As they dodged the spell the appearance of the tree rippled before a figure in a black cloak was revealed.

"Stupefy!"

"Immobulus!"

Both spells were deflected and the figure ran.

"Go!"

"Right!"

They took off in a sprint bobbing and weaving through the trees. However fast they moved, he seemed to be just that much faster. He was smart as well, expertly keeping trees and bushes between him and their spells. Snape growled in frustration and sent a look at O'Connor. A mocking laugh left her.

"What am I? You're personal flourist?" She snapped and leveled her wand. "Herbivicus!"

The forest exploded into movement, bushes growing all around until there was a barrier surrounding them and their quarry.

"Impedimenta!"

"Incarcerous!"

He slowed to a crawl as her spell struck him squarely and toppled forward when the ropes from Snape's wand wrapped around him.

"Stay there."

"Aren't you a gentleman?"

"Just keep an eye out for anyone else." He snapped at her and knelt down to roll the stranger over. She couldn't suppress her gasp. It was the owner of Honeydukes. Ambrosius Flume.

* * *

"The Imperius Curse?"

"Yes, Headmaster. It is apparent that the real perpetrator sent Flume to spy on us while we were investigating the disappearances in the forest."

"Does he have any idea how long he may have been under? Is it possible he may have been under previously?"

"It looks like he may have been under its influence since the start of the year." Abigail replied. They were seated in Dumbledore's office discussing the night's events and their conclusions.

"While we were in the forest I was able to bring up an image using a tracking spell. It showed three men caging the creatures they had taken. One of them was very close in height and build to Flume. It is likely that he's been forced to help collect these creatures for some time now."

"Whoever this man is, he's smart Dumbledore."

"You've figured out it's a man?"

"Tonight we did." Abigail leaned forward. "When Snape brought up that image, there was a fourth man standing back from the other three. He seemed to be the one directing the others, but it seems we both noticed it at the same time."

"He was a puppet as well?"

"Yes. One meant to throw anyone off the trail. We think one of the three men loading the cages was the one really running the show. He moved very cautiously, as if he were constantly checking his surroundings as discreetly as possible. From what we were able see we compiled a small description that may be able to help us narrow down our suspects."

"Really?" The headmaster almost seemed surprised, but there was a twinkle in his eyes that said he had expected nothing less from them. Snape pulled a piece of parchment and a quill from Dumbledore's desk.

"Yes. He's slightly taller than me. Perhaps six foot four and roughly 250 pounds. Left handed. Wand is about twelve inches."

"You noticed all of that so quickly?"

"No. We've been using Legilimency to take a closer look at our memories of the scene. It was quicker than coming up here to use the Pensive and then speaking to you about it."

Dumbledore's eyes flickered and he gave them a wry smile.

"You two really are quite the team. If I didn't know any better I'd say you've worked together for years." Snape rolled his eyes.

"I recommend a thorough investigation of everyone in Hogsmeade to ascertain if anyone else is under the curse."

"I think that is a wise decision, Severus. First thing tomorrow I'd like the two of you to take Minerva, Pomona, and Filius and do just that. Oh, and let's just keep this between the six of us."

"Of course."

"Yes, Headmaster."


	7. December 2, 1988

It seemed the investigation into Hogsmeade had spooked whoever was stealing the animals. No further incidents had been reported since their search a little over a month ago. Regarding their investigation, they had found the other two townsfolk who had been under the imperious curse. One was Jasper Zonko, owner of Zonko's Joke Shop, and rather shockingly the other turned out to be Aberforth Dumbledore, owner of the Hog's Head Inn. Albus' younger brother.

Just as Ambrosius has said, they didn't seem to know when exactly they'd been placed under the curse. They only knew that it had been sometime shortly after the new school year had started. Whoever they were dealing with was smart and covered their tracks well. They were using the start of the school year so that it seemed a possibility that a student or teacher were the culprit; widening their pool of suspects. It wasn't a possibility they were discounting either.

"Are you listening Abigail?"

"Hm? Oh I'm sorry Minerva! I was just thinking about Ambrosius and the others." She lifted her tea pot and refilled their cups. The older woman gave her a look of understanding.

"I'm the same way, dear. I'm most shocked about Aberforth."

"Yes, it seems odd that he'd be caught like that. I've actually been thinking, since neither of them seems able to recall the event or which night precisely that it took place, is it possible they were totally fluthered at the time?"

Minerva paused with a bite of lemon traybake halfway to her mouth. For a moment she rolled the thought around in her head.

"I do believe you may be onto something. Aberforth owns a bar and they have been known to drink together on occasion. If plied with enough alcohol even Albus could be caught under the curse. To keep them under for so long though." She shuddered and set down her fork.

"Perhaps he used a potion to keep them pliant. Something that acted like alcohol so that he could keep someone like Aberforth under. Would something like that have shown up on Poppy's medical report?"

"It might. She tends to keep a copy of any tests she runs. You can ask her first thing in the morning."

"I'll be sure to."

They sat quietly for a moment, sipping tea and eating cake. Abigail enjoyed having tea with Minerva now and then. She was still new to the whole teaching business and the older woman was a great source of information and encouragement. It helped that she liked card games as well. Playing chess with Snape was enjoyable and wonderful for flexing her brain matter, but cards were just plain fun. Something she needed at a job where the only person even close to her age was so dour.

"You and Severus seem to be getting along much better now."

"It helps that I've stopped asking about his past."

"His past?"

"Yes. I didn't trust him when I came to work here. He's a former Death Eater after all and no one knows why he switched sides."

"Dumbledore has always said he knows something that proves Severus' loyalty without a shadow of a doubt. He's quite tight lipped about it, though."

"Yes. He wouldn't tell me anything. So I tried to go to the source, and well you saw our behavior after that. I'm sure that tells it all."

"My dear I thought he may curse you in the hallways with the way he was glaring at you behind your back."

"I was less than kind about it. After I apologized for my behavior and our subsequent jaunt through the forest I dropped the subject. We all have our secrets and for different reasons. I'll judge him by his behavior from now on. That will tell me all I need to know."

"I trust Dumbledore. If he trusts Severus then so will I." Abigail hummed quietly at that and took a sip of tea. "Do you trust him now?"

"Who? Dumbledore?" Minerva gave her an exasperated look.

"Severus, dear." She looked at the young woman as if she were daft. "You said you didn't trust him when you came here. What about now?"

"I'm not sure. He saved me in the forest when we were attacked by those spiders. Even if he's not the chivalrous heroic type he still wasn't about to just let die in there. I don't think most Death Eaters would have bothered. He may not be one to form attachments or to care in general, but he'll save someone because it's what's right. That's enough for me for now."

She smiled and took a sip of tea.

"That and he's bloody brilliant at chess. How can I dislike someone who can finally give me a challenge?"

"You play?"

"I have my own set. Wanna go?"

"My girl, let me show you where Severus learned to play."

* * *

"You and Abigail seem to be doing a lot better."

Albus didn't often patrol the corridors like the other professors; one of the perks when one becomes Headmaster. That night however he felt the need for a walk and decided to accompany his favorite Potions Master.

"She is tolerable." Severus replied flatly.

"Tolerable? From what I hear you are visiting her quarters at least one evening a week."

"It is not like that!" He sputtered. "We are playing chess. Nothing more!"

"I see. Have you finally found someone besides Minerva who can challenge you?"

Severus glared at him and passed his wandlight across the hall rather aggressively.

"She is skilled. I have lost twice." He admitted. Albus smiled at him.

"Well I'm glad to see you finally fostering a budding friendship."

"I am doing nothing of the sort. I have no need for such things."

"Come now Severus. She's close to your age and you're both rather intelligent individuals. You work together wonderfully. Where would be the harm?" The Headmaster peered in an empty classroom. "Do you not want someone who you can have friendly banter with? Someone you can see outside of work and have a bit of fun with. A person whose company you can just enjoy."

A sad looked passed over his eyes quickly and then it was gone.

"I told you Albus, I have no need for such things. She is capable partner, tolerable company, and a challenge at chess. There is nothing more to our relationship, nor shall there ever be."

"Very well Severus. Just know that even if you don't think you need it, you _do_ deserve it. This is a second chance for you; one that you can make the right decisions with this time."

With that the Headmaster bid him good night, leaving him in the hallway looking stricken.


	8. The Desire to Protect

The atmosphere in the staffroom was relaxed when Abigail arrived. There were two fire places in the large room and chairs and couches were clustered around both. A long table was laden with food and another smaller one held alcohol. Septima, Aurora, and Sybil were conversing quietly, but animatedly on one of the couches. Gerald, Simon, and Silvanus were talking Quidditch over glasses of what looked like Scotch. Snape and Poppy were going over her potions stock for when the students returned. Bathsheda, Rolanda, and Irma were visiting family, and Filch was in bed with the flu. Albus had turned in early.

What caught her eye though were the three remaining heads of house. Minerva, Pomona, and Filius were seated in one of the clusters of chairs in front of the far hearth. They were speaking somberly with their heads together. Abigail set down the mini Seared Beef Yorkshire puddings and Raspberry Millefeuille she had brought, grabbed a glass of whiskey, and went to join them. She really was such a nosey fuck sometimes.

_Well it's better than earwiggin it._

"You three look far too serious for a Christmas party. What's the story?"

Minerva pat the cushioned arm of her chair, inviting her to sit and join the conversation.

"Good evening Abigail. I trust you're well."

"I am. Yourselves?"

"We were just discussing Allistar Richby." Filius said.

"The young boy who gave the sorting hat so much trouble?"

"That's the one." Pomona said.

"Has something happened to him?"

"It's not so much that anything has happened to him, so much as what _he's _done." Minerva said.

"The boys a bit troubled." Filius chimed in. "He doesn't handle it very well when he can't have his way."

"He took shears to my plants!" Pomona mourned.

"He also may be responsible for two of the missing cat cases." Filius said.

"No!"

"Yes." Minerva replied. "He was scratched and we think he may have loosed them in the forest. He'll be spending two weeks scrubbing cauldrons and polishing the trophy room when he returns after the holiday."

"Does he come from a troubled household or is he perhaps a spoiled only child? That may explain the bad reaction to not getting his way."

"No. He has two younger siblings. I'm not sure what the home life may be like though." Filius replied.

"He's an unsettling child. His eyes are always so empty." Pomona shuddered.

"Are you speaking of Allistar Richby."

Abigail turned to find Snape frowning down at her. His eyes swept quickly over her attire, a thick off-white turtleneck sweater with sleeves almost to her fingertips and grey leggings, before turning to Filius.

"That boy has an unsettling fascination with wanting to test our potions on animals. Specifically rats. He may not be our thief, but I would recommend your Ravenclaws keep their pets close."

"Is there a counselor he can speak with?" Abigail asked.

"Poppy usually takes care of such things. She has agreed to do so if someone accompanies her." Minerva said. Abigail stared.

"I told you he's somewhat unsettling." Pomona said. "When he stares at you it's as if there's _nothing_ there."

Abigail didn't know what to think. It was so odd to her that an eleven year old boy had unnerved these veteran teachers in such a way; and they were unnerved. Bad behavior in itself wasn't so unusual even though the boy's did seem a bit extreme. Some children came from terrible home life and their conduct reflected that. Perhaps he just needed to learn acceptable social behaviors; what was okay and what wasn't.

_Maybe black eyes on a child are a little disquieting as well. Whereas on an adult…_

Her own eyes drifted upwards to Snape's face. The pitch black irises suited him with his pale face and dark hair. They added to his air of intrigue and ability to command attention. She supposed it was in the same vein as how children in horror movies were infinitely scarier than regular ghosts or creatures.

_Why _is_ that?!_

* * *

It was a few hours later when Abigail finally decided to retire to her rooms. She would be flooing to her family's estates in the morning and she knew she needed at least some rest. Not to mention she wanted to sleep off a bit of her drinking before hand. Her mother would not be happy if she showed up with a hangover. Not that, that hadn't happened previously. Her brother had still been drunk for Easter one year and had spent the day in bed.

_Next time I'll be sure to limit my glasses the night before a holiday._

"Hm?"

Lost in thought and feeling slightly langers she hadn't realized there was someone else in the corridor until she was almost right on top of them.

"What are you doing here? All students were said to have gone home." The young boy was knelt on the floor, hunched over whatever was clutched in his hands. "Are you all right, boyo?"

_Am I even speaking English right now? _She stifled a giggle. God. How much _had_ she drunk? _If I am I might not even be understandable._

As the boy stood and turned she realized it was Allistar Richby.

_Oh I don't believe in coincidence. I've got a bad feelin about this._

"Honey, what are you doing here? _How_ are you here?"

He didn't answer her. He just fiddled with whatever it was he was holding.

"What have you got there?"

* * *

Snape rolled his eyes as Simon stared after O'Connor like a lost puppy. The man had been pining after her since start of term. On more than one occasion he'd requested that Snape bring him up in conversation. He'd promptly shut that down. He was not some cupid playing matchmaker. It wasn't like they did a whole lot of conversing either. The man didn't seem to get it though.

"Perhaps I should walk her back to her quarters. She seemed a little wobbly there."

"She's a big girl Blackwell. She can handle herself." He looked skeptical.

"What if she falls down the stairs and breaks her neck? Then how would you feel?"

"Like she shouldn't have gotten herself drunk. Look, if you're so hell bent on courting the woman just man up and do it Blackwell. Stop dancing around the subject like some lovesick teenager. You're a man for god's sake."

"Hm. Perhaps the reason you're so reluctant to help me is because you fancy her yourself mate." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and nudged the younger man.

"Hardly. I have no interest in such things."

"Oh you can't tell me that. You're in her quarters one night a week now in addition to those Monday potions meetings."

"Office! We are in her office and we are playing chess. That is it. There is nothing more to our relationship than that! I would ask that you refrain from coming up with such fantasies in that head of yours."

"Merlin's Beard, man! Does she not turn your head even a little?"

Snape huffed and set his glass down a little harder than necessary.

"Blackwell I…"

A high pitched shriek split the air and everyone froze, all glancing at each other as if to confirm what they had heard.

"Was that Abigail?" Minerva finally spoke.

Snape and Blackwell both bolted for the door, the others close behind. When they arrived it was to a strange scene.

"What the devil?"

Snape frown harshly. O'Connor was crouched on a windowsill and clutching the frame in a white knuckled grip. Her face was pale and her eyes wild. Standing before her was Allistar Richby holding out his hands palm up. Scrambling and helpless to get away a baby Acromantula flopped around on three legs. The other five lay twitching beside it. Snape swallowed thickly.

"Mr. Richby! What _are_ you _doing_ here?" Minerva's cheeks were tinted red as she bore down on the young Ravenclaw. Behind her Filius was sputtering angrily.

"I made sure everyone was on that train. How did you get back here?"

"And what have you done to that poor spider?!"

Snape turned away from them to tackle the mess that O'Connor was sure to be. Blackwell was trying unsuccessfully to coax her from the sill. She looked petrified and seemed to have checked out. Her deep green eyes were staring somewhere over his left shoulder. Snape didn't have time to be any more kind than he had in the forest, but he knew he had to approach this carefully. She was in a rather precarious position. The castle windows weren't made to hold a person's weight and the sills were quite narrow.

"Miss O'Connor I must insist that you come away from the window at once. We don't need to be scraping you off the front lawn on Christmas morning."

She didn't appear to have heard him at first. Then, slowly, she extended a hand for him to help her down. He had just taken her wrist in a firm grip when the window latch gave way and she slipped backwards. Several voices cried out, but to Snape they sounded like they were incredibly far away. O'Connor had locked eyes with him and her gaze was filled with such abject terror he could almost feel it. Her eyes pleaded with him not to let her die.

_Severus!_

He pulled her towards him and lunged forward to fist his other hand in her oversized sweater, wrenching her from the window. The pane swung open a second later and she clung to his robes, shaking like a leaf.

"Good heavens!" Minerva cried as she darted over. "Are you all right Abigail?"

She nodded numbly.

"What the hell were you thinking?!" Snape snapped. "Crawling up there in the first place!"

His scolding seemed to snap her out of her shock. She leaned back to glare up into his face.

"In case you've forgotten I'm terrified of spiders and I was a bit fluthered if you hadn't noticed!" Her accent was so thick he barely understood her.

"Oh believe me we noticed!"

She pulled her wrist from his white knuckled grip and shoved him.

"I could walk a straight line you prick!"

"Shall we test that theory?"

"Severus! Abigail! Please!" Minerva said.

"Sorry Minerva." Abigail said. Severus just looked away.

"It's all right. I realize things are tense after what just happened. I'm just glad you're safe." The older witch pulled her into a tight hug. When she let go her eyes were slightly misty. "Now, Filius and I will take Mr. Richby to the Headmaster's office. Severus I think it would be best if you saw her to her quarters. Just to be safe."

Abigail turned bright red and buried her face in her hands. Minerva pat her shoulder as they passed, she and Filius marching Allistar between them. As they went she thought she could finally understand what the others had meant. Even though they both had black eyes, said eyes couldn't be any different.

_In Snape's eyes I can see life. Even when he doesn't want anyone to know I can see that spark. I can see how they light up when he knows he's going to win the round of chess, and how they darken when he totally focused on his next move or mad about something. In Allistar's however, there's _nothing¸ _there. His eyes are like dull pieces of coal devoid of all emotion._

_I don't like that boy. I don't like him at all._

"Do you think you can walk that straight line back to your quarters?" Snape sneered. She glared at him and turned to the rest of the staff.

"I'm so sorry I scared you all like that."

"Oh don't worry dear. I'm the same way with snakes." Pomona gripped her hands tightly. "Rather unfortunate for a herbologist." They laughed lightly.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Simon touched her elbow gently. She smiled and nodded.

"Perhaps next time though, just run away instead." Rolanda smiled teasingly. "Not all of us have Severus' lightning fast reflexes."

"Don't worry. No more windows for me. Might just bar mine over."

The group laughed.

"If you're done, some of us would like to get to bed."

"Snape!" Simon said. "She's just been through a right scare. Have a heart! Don't rush her. You go ahead to bed. I can take her."

"It's ok, Simon. I do need to crack on. Have to be up early. Thank you though." She squeezed his bicep and followed the sour looking Snape. "Good night everyone!"

* * *

"I'm not making a good impression as a skilled spy, am I?" O'Connor sounded sullen and Snape smirked.

"Not when there's spiders involved, no." He glanced down at her. Whether it was the scare or her skill at handling liquor she was indeed walking a straight line. "You seem quite capable when it counts though."

She gave him a surprised look.

"After you fixed my knee in the forest you were able to overcome your fear enough to look out for us both. You're also an incredibly skilled and powerful witch and very analytical."

"I didn't take you as one to give compliments."

"I am not complimenting you. I simply recognize and respect talent and skill." He stared ahead frowning slightly. "You do seem to have a knack however for getting yourself into trouble."

"Hazards of the job I guess."

"Is that what you're going to call it?" She smiled and gave him a light shove. At her door she turned to him looking embarrassed. "I do have to get up rather early and I don't know how the hell I'm going to manage to get to sleep. You don't happen to have any, uh…"

O'Connor trailed off turning red. He rolled his eyes and reached into an inner pocket, withdrawing a vial of dreamless sleep. She smiled and took the vial gently.

"Thank you."

"Do try to come back in one piece."

"Good night, Snape. Happy Christmas."

He inclined his head and walked away, cloak billowing behind him.

_That woman is a disaster waiting to happen. That phobia of hers is going to get her killed! What the hell even possessed her to jump up there in the first place? She took off running and screaming like a banshee the first time._

Snape didn't realize it then and there; it wasn't even a conscious thought, but going forward he would be keeping a closer eye on her. Perhaps the need was born from the look she had given him when she'd nearly plummeted to her death. Surrounded by several other capable witches and wizards she had focused on him like he was the only one. Her life was in his hands and she was depending on him to take care of it.

His hand moved of its own accord to rub at the tightness forming in his chest. She had somehow managed to plant in him the desire to protect someone. Albus' words about second chances were the water that helped it grow. They weren't friends, they would never be friends. He didn't bother with such things; but he had failed someone once before, and he wasn't going to do it again.

* * *

Note: This one took a bit longer than the rest because of that ending. He and Lily were able to become such close friends because they were the only two kids who could do what they did and they discovered their abilities together. He just had that need to have someone. After everything that he's been through I don't believe that Snape is the type to form bonds or attachments easily. So I don't want to rush this. I just don't feel that's how it would happen. He's not looking for a friend and probably either doesn't realize how much he needs/wants one or is burying that down really deep. For now he doesn't see them as friends but he respects her.


	9. February 6, 1989

"Lions, tigers, and bears oh my." O'Connor shook her head as she put down the Daily Prophet and pushed forward the plate of orange Madeleines. Snape rolled his eyes but took one without fighting it. "It seems our thief has resumed with a vengeance. Go big or go home I guess."

The paper had reported that several lions had gone missing from a muggle zoo in London. She was stumped. There was no rhyme or reason to these thefts. The animals were so varied and appeared to have nothing in common. So far the only break they had in their investigation was that they had narrowed down their list of suspects. Two teachers and four residents of Hogsmeade fit the description they had put together.

"You read up on the Dark Arts?" She looked up to find the dark haired professor scanning her top shelf.

"Know thy enemy." He quirked an eyebrow but didn't reply. She sighed. "Fine, since you did me such a great favor over the holiday. If you must know my family history is rife with conflict with the "Dark Arts". Dark Arts even Voldemort-" he glared at her "has no knowledge of. Arts so dark they twist your very person to reflect your blackened soul."

Snape turned to face her looking shocked and disbelieving.

"We do not practice any kind of Dark Arts as it is strictly forbidden, but it is human nature to be curious about them. It is not frowned upon to read on and be knowledgeable of them."

"You speak as if your family has its own rules outside of the Ministry's."

She smiled coyly.

"A mystery for another day."

Snape stared at her as he grabbed the chessboard and sat down across from her. He studied her like some strange creature and she could tell he was fighting back the urge to use Legilimency.

"He wondered how lost a person could get. Lost at sea, lost in the woods. Fatally lost. Carol Shields."

"Are you threatening me?" She laughed.

"Hardly Snape, but if you want to get lost in the forests of my mind, don't expect me to come find you."

He frowned at her, that little crease between his eyebrows forming as it always did. Then he turned the chessboard and began setting out the pieces.

"I will wait for the next time you are in the sharing mood."

"Good choice."

* * *

They were twelve moves into their nightly game when there came a great banging on her door. It was Minerva and she sounded distraught.

"What is it? What's happened?" Snape demanded.

"You must come quickly to the lake. I think our thief may have just left us our next clue!"

The scene at the lake was a strange one. Several merpeople were at the edge conversing with Dumbledore. His face looked troubled. O'Connor wasn't sure why until she saw it; half in and half out of the water was what used to be _some_ type of animal. It looked like it had been turned inside out. She swallowed thickly and tried to breathe deeply. Snape reached into his robes and pulled out a small vial for her to sniff.

"Snape, that looks like a crup. See the tail?"

"Yes. I agree." He looked it over carefully, waving his wand in intricate patterns and muttering quietly under his breath. "Whatever has been done to it, this is a form of dark magic I'm not familiar with."

"So he's moved on to magical creatures now?"

"Whatever he's been doing it's escalating." Dumbledore said. "And whatever he has been doing to these poor creatures, he's been feeding them to the Giant Squid when he's finished. There are a number of bones resembling that that of dogs, horses, reptiles, and cats at the bottom of the lake. It seemed to have no interest in this though. That's how they came to find it and bring it to my attention."

"How did they manage to contact you?" Abigail asked. Albus smiled and pointed to his tower. One of the windows was smashed out.

"Let's just say the Giant Squid has quite an arm."

"Headmaster, I think with this we can narrow our list of suspects." Snape said. Minerva gave him a surprised look.

"Indeed Severus. I agree. Let us retire to my office. I will have Hagrid take care of this in the morning."

* * *

"What were you able to surmise, Severus?"

"There were at _least_ two crups there, maybe more. Whatever was done to them was a form of transfiguration I've never seen before, but it is laced with dark magic." He traced his mouth with one long finger as he paced the office. "If it isn't Blackwell or Winters it's someone we're not aware of. There's no doubt in my mind. The four residents of Hogsmeade that were on the list are not cable this."

"Was there anything to indicate that it was either Simon or Gerald?" Albus asked.

"Winters is lucky he can turn a match into a needle let alone transfigure a crup. As for Blackwell his family was victimized in the first war. I don't think that he would use the Dark Arts, but then again one never knows. It could be either at this point. Winters could easily be faking his lack of skill."

"Is it possible someone else, an unknown party, may be involved?" Minerva asked.

"It's not something we're ruling out." Abigail replied. "However I don't think that is the case. Of the three Hogsmeade residents that were under the Imperio curse, two have hidden tunnels that lead to the school. It stands to reason that whoever is doing this was using them to leave and re-enter the school unnoticed."

"You knew about these tunnels and didn't say anything?!" Snape snapped.

"If I had it would have created a biased against the two of them, wouldn't it?" Albus smiled at her answer. "It's likely our thief was looking to bring Zonko and Flume under the Imperius curse and Aberforth was just an added bonus for him."

"Where are these tunnels?" Minerva asked.

"I've only heard talk of the one leading to Honeyduke's. I don't know where the entrance and exit are. Zonko's I've used myself. You enter on the seventh floor through the painting of Farkas the Fierce. It comes out through the basement wall. You have to tap the stones in a certain order. To get through Farkas' painting you have to stroke the right side of the frame and say, "Courage is the companion of the Wolf"."

"How did you come by this knowledge?" Minerva asked.

"Farkas told me." She offered nothing more on that. "Before you ask, I have questioned him. He has no recollection of anyone using his painting. Neither do the others in that corridor. It looks like he's been Obliviating them. I put an alarm ward on the painting. It hasn't been used since our investigation into Hogsmeade."

"I must compliment you on a job well done Abigail." Dumbledore said. "Now we must find a way to flush out which of our teachers is committing these horrible acts."

"We need to shrink his pool of available creatures. It will be easier for us to catch him if we know where he'll look next." Minerva suggested.

"No. I think he'll just look elsewhere then. Further away if he has to. I think we may need to tempt him with something. A rare and hard to come by magical creature that is similar to the muggle ones he's already taken." Abigail said.

"I take it you have something in mind?" Snape sneered.

"Yes, but it may take some time to get it here; and I'll need to speak to Arvin Scamander."

* * *

February 11, 1989

"A Zouwu?! Are you mad?" Snape sneered. She hadn't been forthcoming with her creature of choice at first. There wasn't a guarantee the animal she wanted would be available so she hadn't wanted to upset anyone unnecessarily. Arvin came through though and so she had to reveal the creature.

"Oh hush. They're a gentle creature when treated kindly. There's nothing to worry about."

"But why a Zouwu?"

"Because our thief has graduated to large muggle creatures and small magical creatures of similar nature to the muggle ones he's taken. A Zouwu is very similar in appearance to a lion. So it stands to reason that he'd probably want it."

"And if something happens? If it gets away from us?"

"Snape!" O'Connor pinned his hands to the table with her own. "Stop being so pessimistic. Everything will be fine! You just have to keep the faith. Now if you don't mind I would like to eat my lunch."

He looked less than pleased but straightened up. There would be no lunch for her though. A high pitched chirping filled the air and she stood quickly. Snape had noticed the charms that hung from her waist before. One of them looked remarkably like a mini Foe-Glass. The one emitting the high pitched chirping was a tiny little lock.

"What is that?"

"It my alarm ward on Farkas' painting!"

The two teachers sped out of the hall followed by the confused stares of the students. When they arrived at the painting it was closed and Farkas was one painting over talking with some ladies in Victorian dresses. He looked surprised to see them before rubbing the back of his neck looking shameful.

"Good to see you Professors. What can I do for you?"

"Farkas did anyone use your painting just now? Did any of you see anyone? It's very important!" O'Connor said.

"Well, uh, professor two students _did_ just go through. Seventh year girls from Slytherin."

O'Connor gave Snape a look and he ignored her.

"Thank you Farkas. Well, come on Snape. Let's go get them." Snape huffed exasperatedly as she opened the painting. "What? Were you just planning on letting them go? Ok for your house to break the rules is it?"

"Don't assume that I let my house get away with everything."

"Just most things right?"

Behind Farkas' painting was not the tunnel Snape had expected. It opened on a very narrow spiraling staircase lit by many torches and the walls lined with various pictures similar to Farkas. At the top was one of a man who had to be Farkas' twin. He was slightly slimmer in build but looked far more serious. Every person seemed to be wearing similar armor, silver with wolf head pauldrons. Many of them waved and called out greetings to O'Connor.

"There's five hundred in all. They were a group of muggles who fought on the side of wizards during a time of persecution in Norway. They hated magic, thought it without honor to fight with such trickery, but the magical community there treated them with a kindness the muggles hadn't. So they protected them."

"How did you come to befriend them? They seem very fond of you."

"Now that would be telling."

"EV- ABIGAIL!"

They jumped and peered over the railing. A massive portrait depicting a giant of a man with a horned helmet was glaring up at them.

"Yes?"

"You two better get on with it! Something's wrong! I can hear screaming!"

"Oh no. Could he have come in through Zonko's?"

They ran down the stairs as fast as they could and through a large wooden door. The tunnel it opened on was rocky and wet and very steep. Snape wasn't expecting it and Abigail had forgotten to tell him. His left foot slid forward, caught hers, and sent them sliding down the slick stony hill like a slide.

"You idiot!"

"Don't blame me for your lack of coordination!"

They landed at the bottom in a crumpled heap and struggled quickly to their feet. There was yelling of several voices, something large thumping around, nails on stone, and hysterical cries and sobbing. Both paled and took off running. As they drew closer they could hear someone else coming their way. Snape stopped and raised his wand. Abigail ducked into a crevice and did the same.

Natalie Grey came around the bend and screamed when she saw the large dark figure waiting for her. She raised her wand and her head of house disarmed her.

"Professor Snape?!" Her dark blue eyes filled with fresh tears. "Professor O'Connor?! Thank god! He got her! He took Mary!"

Snape's dark eyes seemed even blacker as he turned to his colleague. She nodded and he disappeared the way Natalie had come. Abigail steered the girl to sit on a rocky outcropping.

"You're not going to help him?"

"He can handle himself. I'm here if he needs me though." She squeezed her shoulder in comfort. "Now I need you to tell me everything that happened."

"We just wanted to go to Hogsmeade to get a few sweets and a butterbeer! That's all! But we were going down the corridor and Mary heard something. There was something really big walking towards us. We put our wands out and tried to hide in one of the crevices, but when we saw it I was just so surprised! I couldn't keep quiet."

"What was it Ms. Grey?"

"It looked like an Occamy but something was wrong with it! It looked like it had chicken legs and wings! There was somebody with it too carrying a cage that was making weird noises." She sniffed and wiped her eyes. "He took her! She saw his face and he took her! We tried to get away, but the Occamy grabbed her. I tried to stop it but it kept dodging my spells. It was so fast! It was going to grab me too so I ran! I left her behind and I ran!"

The poor girl broke down into sobs and Abigail rubbed her back.

"It's all right. There was nothing you could have done. If you had gotten captured as well there would have been no one to tell us what happened. You didn't do anything wrong by running Natalie."

"She's my best friend! What if he does something to her?"

"Don't worry. Professor Snape and I will do everything we can to get her back before that happens." She smiled reassuringly. "Now, is there anything you can tell us about the man or the Occamy that might lead us to him?"

She shook her head.

"He was wearing a hooded cloak. Mary was closest and when he turned his wandlight her way she saw right up into it. That's when the scuffle began."

"I see."

The sound of footsteps reached their ears and Natalie smothered a cry behind her hands. Abigail pushed her back and turned her wand down the corridor, eyes flinty.

"Snape!"

"Yes. It's me." He called back. A moment later his pale face appeared in the wand light. His eyes widened when he met hers. The look in them was startlingly cold.

"Did you find anything?"

"No. He beat me to the exit and sealed it. We need to get back to the school as fast as we can. Someone will have to have seen something. It's broad daylight."

"I've been thinking about that for awhile. Someone should have seen something period by now. But they haven't. Natalie, was there anything else strange about the Occamy, aside from the rooster parts?"

"Umm. I'm not sure. I don't think so."

"Try and focus. Think back. What did it look like?" Snape glanced at her; a good idea of what she was trying cementing itself in his mind. "Where it's eyes normal? Did it have any other limbs? Did it have fur or feathers?"

"Fur! It had fur instead of feathers!"

"Of the animals taken from the forest there were two Demiguise." Snape bemoaned.

"I have an idea of what our thief is up to now." O'Connor said. "Let's get back. Quickly now."

* * *

After dropping Natalie off in the infirmary with Poppy they headed straight for Dumbledore's office. They quickly recounted their incident in the tunnel.

"Dumbledore, I think I may know what he's doing now. The Occamy in the tunnel finally helped it click. It was spliced with a chicken and very likely a Demiguise. I don't know how else it could have gotten around without being seen and Natalie said the Occamy had fur instead of feathers.

"I think our thief is trying to create certain mythological creatures. Creatures like Griffins are magical creatures but they're made up of animals that are in the muggle realm of things. In this case a lion and an eagle. Put them together it's magical animal. What if he's trying to do that, but with creatures that are _already_ magical. A Zouwu and a Thunderbird would make a much more impressive Griffin, wouldn't you say?"

"You've suspected this before?! That's why you wanted the Zouwu!" Snape accused.

"No. It was purely coincidental. It was the Occamy. It's already a little like a Cockatrice and when she described it that was all I could think of. Then when Snape mentioned we needed to get back and see if anyone had reported anything I kept wondering how no one had seen anything previously. I was already wondering if he had put two animals together, when it hit me. The Demiguise that were taken, what if he molded that in too?"

"It would explain why it was walking around with him as well, instead of shrinking to fit in his pocket. The creature may have lost that ability when it was combined with the rooster. So he added in the Demiguise so it could still hide itself." Albus said.

"An Occamy would be a very suitable creature to practice on as well, since it already closely resembles that which he was trying to make." Snape added. He looked at her suddenly. "The lake. He'd succeed in make the creatures using muggle animals. So he fed the results to the squid to hide his tracks and moved on to the magical creatures. I said there were at least two crup in that mutilated pile. What if it was three?"

"He was trying to make a Cerberus using crup." Abigail gasped. She sat back heavily. "I can't imagine what all these animals have gone through; being joined together like that. We have to find Natalie quickly, before he decides to move on to human experimentation."

"Wherever he's conducting these experiments, it has to be somewhere in the castle. He was coming back here with the Occamy and another animal. There would be no reason for it if the lab wasn't here." Snape said.

They were interrupted as Albus' door opened suddenly and Minerva stumbled through looking quite harassed. All three of them stood quickly.

"What's happened Minerva?"

"It's Simon. No one can find him and his office is in disarray."

* * *

The castle wide search lasted the rest of the day and into the early morning hours. There was no sign of Simon or the lab he may be using. With their search ending in the dungeon, O'Connor and Snape stopped to rest in his office.

"Damn it!" Snape kicked one of his desk chairs and dropped into the other, threading his long fingers through his lanky hair. O'Connor was somewhat surprised. He may be rather nasty to the students, but he did seem to care about the safety of those in his house. She could tell that's what was upsetting him most. Not Simon cutting and running, and not their inability to find his lab, but the possibility that they may be too late to save Mary. Whether it was because he truly cared or because she was his charge during the year, O'Connor didn't know.

"Don't worry Snape. We'll find her. For now let's gets some rest. I'm absolutely knackered and even though I know you're trying to hide it, you are too. We're no good to her like this. We'll try again first thing after breakfast." She held up a hand when he tried to interrupt her. "You need food _and_ rest to be in peak condition. Now go to sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

O'Connor slowed to a stop by the door and rested her hand on the frame. Should she give him something? She'd been wrestling with the thought all day. She liked leaking little bits of info about herself whenever he displayed his more admirable qualities. To her it showed she was coming to trust him little by little.

"Was there something else you needed, O'Connor?"

"The reason Farkas and the others like me is because we're similar, but not quite the same. I'll leave you to figure out the details."

* * *

Abigail sat groggily in the little breakfast nook she'd worked into her bed chambers. She held a cup of Earl Grey and was trying to wake herself enough to get a shower. Her clothes from the night before were still on and they were incredibly rumpled from being slept in. She'd flopped on her bed and passed right out the moment she was horizontal.

_Mornings. Who needs them?_

The wards around her office and quarters rippled as Snape entered. He knocked on her door a second later.

"Enter at your own risk."

There was a moment of hesitation then the door opened. He kept his eyes to the floor until he discerned she wasn't in the midst of changing. She laughed.

"I'm not a morning person Snape and I look horrible after last night. I was just making a joke." He gave her a look as if she were a child on his last nerve. "Are you here to try getting out of breakfast? You need to eat. I see you showered and shaved. Did you sleep?"

"You're starting to sound like Minerva. Yes mother. Are you happy?"

"Such a good boy." Her appearance changed so that she looked like a female version of him but 20 years older. "You make your mother so proud. I saw your article in The Daily Brew. Put it on me fridge, I'ave."

"Are you quite finished?"

"Oh dear. You're upset. Come 'ere. Give us a hug. Tell mummy all about it. Has that horrid Irish woman been making your life difficult again?"

"Will you stop? Don't touch me. O'Connor!"

They ended up in a heap on the floor with her arms and legs wrapped around him and her cheek pressed against the top off his head. He struggled at first but eventually gave up as he was essentially fighting himself. They would have been an interesting sight to behold.

"There, there."

"Will you be serious?" He snapped and swatted at her. He could feel her body shaking as she suppressed her laughter.

"I'm always serious." Snape turned the best he could to glare at her and scoffed at the comical overly serious frown on her normal face. She released him and they stood. "So what brings you to my quarters this early?"

"I want to go back to Blackwell's quarters. Something about last night doesn't seem right to me. I would like your opinion."

"All right. Let me just hop in the shower right quick."

"I will meet you there."

"Are you sure that's a good idea? Going alone."

"Do you doubt me?"

She gave him an exasperated eye roll and waved him off.

"Fine. I'll join you as soon as I'm done."

He nodded and set off. She grabbed a pair of brown pants that were equal parts leather and cotton, a white blouse, brown leather corset, and light brown bolero jacket. Brown leather ankle boots completed the outfit. A very quick shower later and she was on her way. She didn't like the idea of leaving him to it on his own. When she arrived a few of the portraits greeted her.

"Morning Trimble, Jigger. Is Snape still inside?"

"Yes, ma'am. Went in about twenty minutes ago."

"Nasty business with Blackwell. Never would have expected it."

"I don't think anyone did. I think Snape still doesn't." She bid them a good day and stepped inside. The room was almost exactly as Minerva had found it the night before, the only difference was that there seemed to be more papers and books scattered around the room now and a scorch mark on the floor. Snape was nowhere in sight. She frowned, trying not to jump to conclusions. Back out in the corridor she faced the two portraits that framed the door.

"Are you positive Snape went in and that he didn't leave? No gaps in your memory or anything? Did you leave the area at all since he went in?"

"We're positive my dear. He went in twenty minutes ago and hasn't been out since. We've been here with Emeric and Greta the whole time."

Abigail felt like the air had been sucked from her lungs. Severus Snape was gone.

* * *

Outfit


	10. Thief Revealed

Abigail paced Blackwell's room biting her thumbnail and wondering what the hell she should do now. Simon must have come back for something and had a run in with Snape. Had he surprised the potion master; caught him unawares? Maybe they had fought or Simon fled and Snape gave chase. She was trying not to imagine the worst, but it kept floating to the front of her mind. What if he hadn't given chase or Simon hadn't simply incapacitated him in some way? What if he was laying dead somewhere or worse, being subjected to the madman's experiments?

_Think rationally! What would you do if this were one of your regular cases?!_

She withdrew her wand and waved it, golden powder settling over everything. She touched one of the footprints and while it wasn't what she expected she was not surprised. The Alchemy teacher Gerald Winters, their other suspect, was dashing around Simon's personal quarters wild-eyed and frantic looking. He was stuffing as many of the defense teachers personal affects into a bag as possible. A weight settled into her stomach.

_Gerald is our guy and he's trying to frame Simon? Why? We were careful; only speaking in Albus' office or mine. He couldn't have known about our suspect list._

Her eyes raked over the room, landing on the footprints that undoubtedly belonged to Snape. Gerald had been working on animals; for him to suddenly switch to taking people for his experiments didn't make sense, didn't fit the pattern. It was too soon. He'd only just started working with magical creatures. She couldn't imagine that he'd progressed far enough to move onto human trials. That meant Simon must have seen something. Mary had been taken because she'd seen his face in the tunnel. Snape most likely had caught Gerald returning.

A thought slammed into her. Simon had disappeared _right after_ Mary had been taken in the tunnel. He must have seen them returning to the castle through another tunnel; most likely the one in Honeydukes. Would he have had time to Obliviate the portraits? She had to hurry so she could ask them if they'd seen anything. She had to be sure. For all she knew they could both be playing her. First, she needed something this room could give her that would help her track him down better than any spell.

_I have a pretty good idea what floor his lab is on, based on his preferred passage, but we haven't been able to find it. It's probably a hidden room or perhaps a large open secret passage. There's one way of finding it that he probably hasn't thought of though. It's a shame the things the Wizarding world overlooks. Maybe they should learn not to cut themselves off from the Muggles so much._

Abigail dropped to all fours, her limbs changing and her joints shifting. Her face lengthened into a long muzzle and her ears migrated to the top of her head. A long sweeping tail swished across the floor, disturbing some of the scattered papers. She shook out her thick coat and put her nose to the floor. The familiar smells of her colleagues filled her nose; coffee and tobacco for Simon, Scotch and parchment for Gerald, and various potions ingredients for Snape.

Their more personal smells were revealed to her and she sneezed, sending the golden powdered footsteps across the floor. The smell of Scotch was intermingled with animal smells of all kinds. It made her nose twitch. There was something else; an animal smell that was not intermingled with the Alchemy teacher's scent. It was a large cat smell combined with something she couldn't identify, and a large bird of prey. She sneezed again. It just smelled wrong.

_The bastard made a griffin and it was in here. Shit!_

With her face pressed to the floor she could make out claw marks but there was, thankfully, no scent of blood. She hoped that meant Snape was in one piece somewhere. How had they gotten out of the room without being seen though? Even if the creature also utilized the Demiguise and Gerald spelled himself invisible the portraits still would have seen the door open. She trotted towards the window. Deep gouges marred the sill, confirming her suspicions.

_I think that's enough. Time to speak to those portraits._

* * *

Snape groaned as consciousness returned to him. He could feel that he was seated, held upright by ropes wrapped around his torso. His head throbbed dully and he winced. What the hell happened? Moving slowly he lifted his head and took in his surroundings. The room was dimly lit by just a few sconces, but it was enough for him to see that the room was quite large. He was facing the door and various cages lined the walls to his right and left. Directly in front of him a row of smaller cages bisected the room.

On either side were several operating type tables. Most of them were empty. To his right, second table down, was another failed attempt at a Cerberus with Crup. There were three large tables on the left and what he saw on the closest one shocked him. Simon Blackwell and a Unicorn were partially combined in a disastrous attempt at a Centaur. He swallowed thickly, willing away the nausea. Both were quite clearly dead.

_Looks like I've found Winters' lab. But where the hell are we?_

He scowled as his head gave a painful throb and the memory came back to him. He had been in Blackwell's room for barely five minutes, looking through papers, when he'd heard the growl. The sound sent a chill down his spine and he turned slowly to face the window. A Griffin appeared there, fur rippling as the illusion faded to reveal it. His wand hand twitched as he gripped the Ebony rod tighter. Which of them would be faster?

"Too damn nosey!"

Snape had jumped; surprised to see Gerald Winters appear atop the beast. Then the spell had knocked him backwards into the wall behind him with enough force to knock him out.

_Bastard. I knew something didn't seem right about Blackwell's disappearance. It was to haphazard and unnecessary if only Mary had seen his face._

Two thoughts occurred to him then. O'Connor. She was supposed to meet him in Blackwell's room. Would she be the next one carried in here? He tugged at the ropes keeping his wrist firmly behind the chair and his ankles secured to its legs. Then there was Mary. Was she here? Had the bastard done something to her already? His eyes scanned the room and he caught sight of a few large cages that didn't seem to be making any noise.

"Miss Stillwell! Are you in here?"

For a moment the lab was silent.

"Professor Snape?" Her voice sounded watery and unsure. A small pale hand appeared and gripped the bars of the nearest cage on his right. She pressed her face against them and stared at him. Her eyes were puffy and red and he could see the tears glistening on her cheeks. A small smile split her face and she gave a quiet sob. "You're ok! I thought maybe…"

"Are you injured? Did he do anything to you?"

She shook her head.

"No. He was pretty angry that I saw him and I thought he might, but then when we came out of the passage Professor Blackwell saw us and they started fighting!"

"Do you know where we are, Stillwell?"

"A room on the seventh floor. I've never seen it before. The door just appeared out of the wall."

He narrowed his eyes. There had been whispers of such a room since _his_ time as a student; a room that appeared when you weren't looking and couldn't be found again. Had Winter's figured it out and made it his own?

"Professor, what's going to happen to us?" The girl sounded close to tears and he rolled his eyes. He did not need her getting hysterical at a time like this.

"Nothing is going to happen to us Miss Stillwell. However I need you to remain calm. Did you see what he did with my wand?"

She sniffled and pressed closer to the bars to try and get a better look at him.

"I think he put it in his robes. He was holding two when he levitated you through the door and then I didn't see them again after he tied you to the chair."

He twisted his wrists and tried to focus on getting the rope to untie itself. The pain in the back of his head was making that difficult. Winters was smart and had not left anything out in the open that could assist them in escape. Wandless magic and O'Connor were their best chance at the moment. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on releasing himself from his bindings.

"Professor!"

"Miss Stillwell I am trying to concentrate!"

She brushed off his attitude, used to it after six and a half years in his house, and pointed through the bars.

"The door, professor!"

His head snapped up, throbbing harshly in response, and he stared at the large pair of double doors oozing out of the wall. He willed his heart rate to slow and worked harder at the ropes. Mary whimpered pitifully and disappeared from the bars to huddle in the back of her cage. The doors clicked open and closed, but he couldn't see anyone enter the room.

_What the hell?_

"Who's there? Show yourself!"

There was a great scraping of nails on stone and one of the biggest wolves he'd ever seen appeared to the right of the center cages. It had to be over three feet tall at the shoulders with thick black fur mottled with red. A shock of white fur scored the right ear and dotted the right thigh. Amber eyes bore into him with a clearly defined intellect. He breathed deeply and stared back, his eyes trained on its shoulder. Staring a wolf in the eyes was a challenge.

_Is this one of Winters' creatures? What will it do?_

He tugged hard at the ropes. They were slowly untying themselves. He only hoped it would be in time. Having a wolf maul him while he was tied to a chair was not his ideal way to go. The wolf didn't make any threatening moves towards him. Instead it lay down on its belly, chin to the floor, and wagged its tail. He gave it a curious look, the usual deep frown line appearing between his brows.

_What the hell?_

The wolf whined and began crawling towards him, pushing itself across the floor; tail still waving manically. When it got to Mary's cage it stopped, sat up quickly, and froze. He pulled harshly and felt the burn of the ropes as they dug into his skin.

"Leave her, beast!"

It turned to him slowly, eyes appearing to have widened. Then it gave him a look he could only describe as sly and seemed to smile. It was a look he recognized so well he could place it on any face, man, woman, or beast. One of the white markings made sense now at least. She was missing a small slice out of her right ear from one of her Auror jobs.

"O'Connor?!"

The wolf almost seemed to dance over to him before burying its face in his hair and robes, nose working overtime.

"We are both fine. O'Connor I do not have my wand. He's taken it." He attempted to glare down his nose at her. She was too tall. "You neglected to mention you were an Animagus."

It was strange to see a wolf shrug.

"Did you say that was Professor O'Connor?" Mary appeared at the bars again looking shocked. "You're one big wolf, Professor."

"Blackwell is dead, O'Connor." He jerked his head at the table and she followed his gaze, a small whine escaping her. "Winters has a griffin that he's added a demiguise to. We have to be careful."

She growled as she pulled at the ropes with her teeth. He rubbed his wrists and stared at her.

"How did you find us, and why aren't you changing back?"

She snorted and rolled her eyes, leaving him to free Mary as she sniffed around the room. He realized then that her sense of smell was the only way to find the creatures hiding themselves with the demiguise's ability. Until they were safely out of the room it was best she remained as she was. Snape moved over to Mary's cage and took the lock in his hand, pulling hard.

_Alohamora._

The lock gave way and he dropped it to the floor. Mary scrambled out quickly and stood before him looking unsure for a moment. He was about to ask her what was wrong when he threw her arms around his middle and began to cry. O'Connor snickered as much as she could in wolf form. Snape looked shocked and horrified, his arms held up and away from the teen. He was entirely out of his element and it showed.

"I'm sorry! I was just so scared! I thought… I thought…"

Snape seemed to deflate as a heavy sigh left him and he rested his hand on her head, gently ruffling her hair.

"It's all right. You're safe now. We're getting you out of here." He looked up to find O'Connor staring at him with an almost serene expression, her tail swishing lazily. His eyes narrowed fiercely and he almost snarled at her. "What?!"

She shook her head and trotted towards the door. The room was clear of invisible griffins it seemed. He turned to follow her, guiding the slightly hysterical teen clinging to his side. Three feet from the door O'Connor halted, her hackles raised, and let loose a raspy snarling growl that sent chills down his spine. It was definitely not a sound he'd want to here in the forest at night. Mary went rigid and if he weren't holding onto her she might have run back to her cage. The double doors were melting out of the wall.

"We have to get a message to the headmaster, O'Connor! Before that door closes again."

She glanced back at him and rolled her eyes as if to ask him what kind of fool he thought she was. There was a press upon his mind and he immediately delved into hers in response. A memory of her sending Farkas and two others to the headmaster's and headmistress' offices played out. He pulled back and gave her an approving look just as the door opened. Snape covered Mary's mouth when she made to scream and pulled her behind a pillar. O'Connor dived beneath a table.

Gerald Winters pushed the doors wide open and stopped when he noticed the chair across the room was empty. His face paled and he rushed forward, the sound of heavy clawed feet following after him. Snape glanced between the open doors and the crazed Alchemy teacher who was just feet away. His eyes met O'Connor's and she nodded. He returned it and hurled himself towards the door, dragging Mary with him. Five feet from the exit there was a snarl and Winters whirled on the spot.

O'Connor burst from under the table, jaws clamping down on his forearm. The spell aimed at the potion master's head went awry, blowing pieces of stone across the room. Snape practically threw his student through the doors and told her to run straight to Flitwick's office and tell him what was happening; to stay there for protection. Behind him the massive wolf shook Winters like a ragdoll, throwing his body across the floor as he tried to curse her.

The griffin, no doubt responding to its master's attack, was thundering across the floor towards him. He couldn't see it and made a blind leap to get out of its way. Claws tore through his cloak, snagging the fabric and pinning it to the floor. He spun and folded at the waist letting it slide up and over his head. The beast roared angrily as its prey got away and pounced after him. Snape cursed and dived under the row of tables for some protection.

"You bloody beast! I'll kill you!" Something made of fabric tore and the distinct sound of wood clattering across the stone reached his ears. O'Connor had found his wand. "Get back here!"

The first table in the row flew across the room as Snape moved from the second to the third. O'Connor appeared at the end and as she passed under the table she returned to human form. His wand was clutched securely in her right hand. She gave him a cheeky grin and passed it to him. He didn't know how she looked so good natured when there was blood all over her face and robes.

"Go get him tiger."

They rolled in opposite directions as Winters and his monster obliterated the tables they were hiding under.

"Fumos!"

"Depulso!"

Gerald screamed as he was thrown backwards through the rapidly spreading smokescreen. The griffin roared as it lost sight of its prey and furiously beat its large wings in an effort to clear the smoke. Snape leapt over the center cages and waited for the animal to barrel through them, dodging out of the way as one of them sailed by his head. He raised his wand at the gap between cages and a thick gelatinous liquid spewed forth.

His aim was only slightly off, the glue like liquid coating the beasts hindquarters and right wing. It roared, appearing only briefly, and charged him. He leapt to the side, gasping as sharp claws caught his left arm, and rolled to his feet. Amber-red eyes burned from an unseen face, razor sharp teeth bared in a growl.

"Everte Statum!"

The griffin ducked and lunged forward, knocking Snape off his feet and pinning him to the floor. He grunted as all the air left his lungs in a rush and his wand clattered away across the stones. Hot air ghosted across his face and saliva dripped onto his cheek and forehead. Claws dug into his shoulders as the beast bore down on him. He pushed his hands up against the beast's chest and hoped his head was cleared enough.

_Stupefy!_ The beast jerked and swayed, attempting to pull away. _Stupefy dammit!_

There was a pitiful yowling sound and the hybrid collapsed on top of him, pinning him to the ground. He groaned at the weight and attempted to free himself. Behind him someone approached on unsteady feet, and looking up he spied Gerald staggering towards him.

"Miserable, interfering, wretches. You just don't recognize greatness!" Winters glared down at him, blood dripping from his nose and mouth. His clothes were singed and blood still ran freely from his tattered arm, his robe hanging in shreds. Snape scowled at him, ready to cast another spell when the man dropped forward right on his face. O'Connor stood behind him, smirking with her hand on her hip. There was a long cut just below her left nostril that stretched down over her chin. Her face, neck, and clothes were still coated in drying blood.

"You ok?" He glared at her.

"I am fine, thank you." He eyed her. She looked unharmed save the cut on her face. "You?"

"No worse for wear." She smiled and levitated the griffin while picking up his wand. "Got thrown once or twice, but no real harm done. We should get those wounds taken care of."

He looked down at his arm and shoulders only now realizing how much they hurt. They weren't serious, only surface wounds, but they did need treatment.

"Abigail! Severus!"

Minerva and Albus were running down the hallway towards the open doors; but before they could reach them they slammed shut with a bang. The last glimpse of their faces showed shock and horror. Snape and O'Connor turned to their crazed colleague, his form shaking with wet sounding laughter. Somehow he'd locked them inside. He tilted his head to smirk at them, eyes sparkling with some hidden knowledge.

"You two won't leave this room alive." He rolled quickly and pointed his wand at the ceiling. "Alohamora!"

The large globe like chandelier above them clicked and twisted open until it more resembled a bowl than a sphere. From inside came the soft sound of something large slithering around the inside of the dish. O'Connor took a step back as a large amber-eyed bird head lifted up and over the edge of its cage and peered down at them with predatory intensity. Its shimmery blue and violet fur rippled before the beast slowly disappeared.

"Shit!"

"Nebulus!"

O'Connor drove her boot hard into Winters face, knocking him out, and ran for cover. Snape followed close behind, a stream of thick cloud cover spilling from his wand.

"Do you think your wolf form will be able to pinpoint it?"

"Not fast enough. I'd be able to find it but probably not before it ate me."

"Dammit."

A soft swish let them know the creature had landed. It cooed softly before they heard the sound of cages and tables being pushed across the floor. They glanced at each other.

"What's it doing?"

"And how exactly would I know, O'Connor?"

Snape moved to peer around the pillar and watched as everything was being pushed outwards from the center of the room as the Occamy rapidly grew to fit its new space. He could almost feel the blood drain from his face.

"It's going to crush us to death O'Connor!"

They moved quickly from their hiding place, firing spell after spell just hoping to hit the damned thing. It was nimble and fast and smart. If it couldn't twist its large thin body out of the way fast enough it propelled a table or cage in the way of their shot. Snape curse and turned his eyes to the windows. He didn't want to show her something he'd learned at the hands of the Dark Lord, but he was going to have to if they wanted to live.

"Keep firing!"

He grabbed her bicep and started directing her towards the window. She gave no argument and let him drag her as she fired blindly at the areas where the furniture was moving. The beast cried out as one of her spells struck its flank and suddenly tables and cages were flying across the room as the creature expanded twice as fast now. Pillars groaned as its body pressed up against them and the beast adjusted its long thin body to wrap around them.

"Snape!"

"Almost there!"

"It's too late!"

The large slender body slammed into them, pinning them against the wall right next to the window Snape had been gunning for. O'Connor groaned and Snape gasped harshly as she was crushed against his wounds. She gave him an apologetic look and jabbed her wand down into the body trapping them.

"Stupefy!"

The beast squawked loudly and pushed harder. O'Connor cried out and Snape clamped down on his lip to suppress his own cry. He could hardly draw breath she was press so tightly against him. Where the hell was Dumbledore? A quick glance at the door made him wonder if they'd even be able to get through.

"Confrigo!"

The beast shrieked as her curse struck it and Snape closed his eyes as blood splattered their faces. Her spell seemed to only enrage the Occamy as its body continued to grow. It shifted then, rolling them sideways along the wall. Snape wasn't able to suppress his cry as his spine, ribs, and shoulders were ground against the stone wall. O'Connor screamed as the muscles in her back were sent into spasms from the pressure and pull of the Occamy's body.

"Snape if it does that again it's going to snap my spine."

"Spells only seem to be irritating it at this point." He gasped. "Hold off on them for now. We just need to get to the window."

He finally managed to pull his arm free from where it was pinned between the wall and her hip and blew out the window. The explosion was much louder than expected, startling them both, until they realized that someone had blown a hole in the locked doors of the room. Through it they could just make out a furious Dumbledore, his blue eyes almost seeming to shoot sparks.

"Stop!"

"It'll crush us!"

The headmaster paused, wand drawn back to launch another spell.

"When I say, we're going out the window." O'Connor stared at Snape like he had three heads.

"First you tell me to stay out of the windows and now you want to throw me out one? Make up your mind!"

He glared at her before they were squeezed again. They groaned in unison.

"Just do as I say!" He pressed the tip of his wand against the Occamy's body. "Diffindo!"

The spell sliced clean through its body and it let loose a deafening shriek. It pulled back away from the attack, Snape dragged her to the window and wrapping his arms securely around her waist and shoulders, toppled them over the sill. O'Connor shrieked and clung to him for dear life as they dropped.

"Calm yourself. We haven't gone far." O'Connor pulled her face from his shoulder to see them hanging suspended seven stories above the ground. She moaned pitifully and buried her face in his chest. "Stand on my toes if it makes you feel better."

"Unsupported flight. Nifty little trick." She squeezed tighter and picked her dangling feet up to rest them on his boots.

He smirked and moved them up just high enough to point his wand in the window. The Occamy was still shrieking and hurling itself around the room. It was still invisible and he was able to easily find Winters' and Blackwell's bodies. Both were horribly mangled. Albus was peering through the hole at him again. He nodded. Feeling a tightness in his chest Snape leveled his wand at the beast and cast Firestorm.

"But Snape! What about-."

"They're both dead."

"But Blackwell's body!"

"His family doesn't need to see it. He was half connected to a Unicorn with his insides hanging out and now he's been crushed on top of that. It's better this way."

When the flames had died down, Snape took them back into the room. As soon as they were both safely on the ground Albus opened the doors and swept inside with Minerva. Abigail turned to greet them and when they got a look at her face the Headmistress staggered into the doorframe. She clamped a hand over her mouth looking horrified and O'Connor looked at her with confusion. Snape rolled his eyes.

"Sanguis Evanesco. The blood isn't hers Minerva."

"Oh my god!" Abigail's hands went to her face. "I didn't even think of that with everything going on; though a good deal of it is probably spread on your shirt now, Snape. Sorry I scared you Minerva." She smiled apologetically and they all grimaced. Even Dumbledore looked disconcerted. Abigail caught on quickly, tested her teeth with her tongue, and promptly lost her breakfast on the floor.

"Oh dear!" Minerva said softly.

* * *

"Are you still brushing your teeth?"

Snape leaned against the doorframe to her bathroom, back in his usual frock and cloak. O'Connor rolled her eyes as she put her toothbrush back and dried her face. Her long red hair was still wet from her second shower that day and clung to her face, neck, and shoulders. This was the first time he'd seen her with anything other than long sleeves. Standing before him in a spaghetti strap top and shorts that were far too short for company he could see she had tattoos.

Her entire right arm and left leg were covered in a scene of black lace, gems, and garden greenery covered with roses and lilies and hyacinths; Orchids, Hibiscus, and Dahlias. There was a Water Lily on the outside of her ankle and a Lotus on the inside of her wrist. He looked back to her face to find her staring at him with a look he couldn't quite decipher.

"I didn't realize you had tattoos. You've been keeping them hidden."

"Well, I get enough stares from you and Minerva about my clothing. I didn't want to give you a stroke or something." She sounded slightly bitter.

"They're just unusual. I have nothing against your wearing of muggle clothes." He looked to the side. "Minerva is quite old fashioned. She knows times are different, but she likely thinks you should wear robes at least while you're here at Hogwarts. Though many will probably wear robes till the day they die. It's how our community has always dressed."

"Yes. Not like its 1989 or anything. They're heavy and impractical. Muggles don't even dress the way they did hundreds of years ago."

She turned back to the mirror to dry her hair and he was given a good view of her back. Even though most of it was covered by her shirt he could tell the whole of it was covered by a large Japanese cherry blossom tree. He was almost curious about what the bottom half looked like. Pushing the thought forcefully from his mind he met her eyes in the mirror.

"Poppy patch you up all right?"

"I handled it myself. They were nothing."

She hummed noncommittally.

"The meeting with Dumbledore? Sorry I didn't go with you."

"And have you vomiting all over the Headmaster's office? No. It's best you returned to your quarters. Do you usually maul your targets when you're a wolf?"

"I've only had to do it once before. I hated it just as much then. It's definitely something I've tried to avoid, but I wasn't about to let him hex you. It was either that or a mouthful of blood."

"You have my thanks."

"Of course." She smiled. "What did Dumbledore have to say?"

"The Ministry will be sending Aurors to the castle immediately to take statements and tend to what's left of the bodies."

"Mary?"

"She unharmed and is speaking with Poppy about what happened."

"Good. Good. Go raibh maith agat."

For a moment it was quiet.

"Farkas and the others are werewolves aren't they? How did they find out about you? I'm assuming that's _why_ he spoke to you in the first place."

She smiled.

"I may have gone up there to practice being an Animagus. There's a classroom on that floor that wasn't usually checked on patrols. I got stuck on my third try. I kinda freaked out and ran into the hallway. Tripped over my own four feet and fell flat on my face before changing back." She grinned and turned to lean back against the sink.

"Farkas thought it was hilarious and wouldn't stop laughing. When I went to walk away he stopped me and said I looked like a woman who wasn't afraid to take risks and enjoyed adventures. Turns out he'd been watching me since my first trip up there. He told me I'd make a fine warrior some day and asked if he was right about me enjoying adventures. I said yes and he told me how to get into the passage."

"You were a hellion at school, weren't you?" She laughed, clear and free.

"I got into my share of trouble and detentions. Life's too short to not have fun." A contented sigh left her and she looked up to lock eyes with him. It sent a jolt of electricity through him. He was rooted to the spot, unable to move.

"I was told some months ago that I should trust my gut instincts because they've never steered me wrong before. It's true. I've often reacted without thinking in some situations and it's always put me right where I need to be, physically and metaphorically." She smiled at him. It was so relaxed and so bright it was like staring at the sun.

"You did wonderfully with Mary today. I know a lot of the students don't like you, and rightly so with some of your behaviors, but I feel like your house probably gets to see a different side of you. I'm going to assume you project to them someone they can come to and rely on for help. Even if you're still quite standoffish." She grinned cheekily.

"That girl needed someone today. Someone that gave her assurance and made her feel safe. Apparently she thought that person was you and you didn't disappoint even if you weren't exactly comfortable with it."

"Will you get to the point O'Connor? I hope you're not trying to paint me as some valiant protector or gallant hero."

"Not at all. I'm just saying I guess you're trustworthy in spite of everything I initially thought. Death Eaters don't have hearts after all. I can't imagine any of them caring for a hysterical teen in the face of danger. I was wrong about you."

She placed her hand on his shoulder for a moment, squeezing tightly, and then exited back out to her bedroom.


	11. Revelations and the End of the Year

Severus Snape was an enigma. Abigail had thought that he would be glad to hear that she trusted him; that she had been wrong that first day in her office. Instead of displaying any sort of smugness or even seeming to be glad she trusted him he had left her office looking agitated. Maybe he didn't like that she had touched him. He really didn't seem like the touchy feely type. However, he hadn't told her off for bear hugging him and knocking them to the floor earlier that morning. She sighed and flopped back on her bed feeling a little lost.

_Oh. Perhaps he has a hard time with praise. I'm sure he's not used to such a thing if his years at Hogwarts and time with the Death Eaters are any indication. It probably feels like a trick; like I'm trying to get something out of him._

Deciding that was most likely the case Abigail tried to push her troubling thoughts to the side and get some rest. Her lack of sleep and action filled morning had left her feeling incredibly drained.

* * *

Snape paced his quarters feeling bewildered. O'Connor was so confusing. She came here so distrustful of him because his involvement with the Death Eaters; so much so that she refused to take Dumbledore's word that he was solely fighting for the light. Then she up and changes her mind just because he comforted a student. She hadn't even said anything about his ability to use unsupported flight, a talent he had learned from the Dark Lord himself. It was like she didn't even care!

_Does my interaction with Stillwell override even that?_

How could she tell he wasn't faking it? _He_ knew that his previous associates couldn't pull off a believable farce of caring for the girl, even if he could. There was no way _she_ could know such a thing though. So what made her so sure that he wasn't just acting the part? Did she really hold that much stock in what that person had said or was there something else? More importantly why did he care?

Perhaps it was because even though things had started out so terribly between them he had grown to respect O'Connor. She was an incredibly smart and talented witch; not to mention powerful. Then there were the mysteries surrounding her. She spoke as if she came from some strange place were the rules of their ministry did not apply to them; and then there was that book on her shelf. What type of Dark Arts did they have a history with? He'd never heard of any that changed you physically by using them.

Maybe it was because they were similar in temperament. They were both plagued by short and hostile tempers and had an extreme dislike of being called cowards. Speaking of being called a coward; what was with that comment about her cowardice in the first war? What had she meant?

_ "You were right. I was a coward, but not for the reasons you may think."_

His thoughts drifted then to the strange powers she had displayed in the forest. She could grow plants from seemingly nowhere to monstrous sizes and make them move just by touching them. He had neither seen nor heard of such a spell before. She had said it wasn't exactly an Irish thing. Did that mean that anyone could learn it? Snape sighed heavily and dropped into his favorite armchair by the fire.

He knew why he cared what she thought. He just didn't want to admit it. She was a curiosity and a puzzle that called to be solved. It was in his nature to be distrustful and someone like O'Connor who posed more questions than answers, he _needed_ to figure her out. More so than that he cared because he respected her greatly and that made him crave her respect as well.

* * *

2/13/1989

Classes were cancelled Monday and a moment of silence was held for Simon Blackwell. Dumbledore did not go into any specifics on what had happened. He merely said that following a confrontation with Gerald Winters the Defense teacher had tragically lost his life. Breakfast was a somber affair and several of the students and a few teachers even she tears, O'Connor being one of them.

The rest of the day saw Abigail, Snape, and Dumbledore, helping the Aurors sort through Gerald's things. His journals showed a slow descent into madness after his wife was injured in an accident and was paralyzed from the waist down. He had gone through multiple experiments in an attempt to cure her, but in the end had been unsuccessful. Then halfway through the summer she had taken her life. Gerald spiraled downward in a well of grief.

It was when the Daily Prophet printed a story on Centaurs that the idea of splicing came to him. His wife may be gone but that didn't mean he couldn't conquer the ailment that led to her death. He had brought the idea up to his father-in-law and the man responded poorly. In a fit of rage and grief he became Gerald's first victim and first failed experiment. O'Connor put her hand over her mouth and turned to Albus.

"When you checked on Simon and Gerald the disappearance of Gerald's father-in-law didn't come up?"

"No. There's no missing persons report for him." Dumbledore said. "His mother-in-law passed some time ago and they were both only children. Without her there was no one to report him missing."

"You never do forget your students do you, Headmaster?" Auror Thomas McKinnley said. "Do you keep in touch with everyone?"

"I try." He smiled thinly.

After the failed experiment on his father-in-law Gerald realized he needed to start small. So he began creating magical creatures that already existed in combinations of non-magical creatures. He knew if he could just figure that out he could move on to using magical beasts to create new versions of ones that already existed. If he could do that then there was no doubt he could figure out how to merge humans and animals.

Gerald's writing took a dizzying turn into madness in which he thought himself a master of life and death; an innovator in the conquering of diseases and disabilities and a creator of new life. He began to think himself a god and started creating creatures simply to test his abilities and see what wonders he could accomplish. His end goal was never forgotten though and his encounter and subsequent capture of Mary and Simon expedited his timeline.

"We cut things really close." Abigail said. "If we had taken much longer Mary might have been on one of those tables too."

Snape nodded his expression tight.

"You two cut it close in general." Auror Samantha Green said. "He was planning on trapping you in the forest the next time you went looking for potion ingredients."

Samantha paused and looked uncomfortable for a moment.

"What is it dear?" Albus asked.

"He wrote that all he had to do was use the spiders again and Professor O'Connor would get them both killed."

Abigail's face looked like thunder. She felt angry, embarrassed, and ashamed all at once. Snape looked angry but also smug and amused.

"Getting us into trouble yet again I see."

"Oh shut up!" O'Connor growled. "Wait you said use the spiders again. Does that mean he's responsible for us getting attacked the first time?"

They quickly looked back through his journals and found the one detailing the night in question. According to his writing he had snuck into the Acromantula nest and stolen three of their young. He had been chased straight to the Unicorn clearing they had been attacked in. It was also how he had found the horses in the first place. He made sure to mark the clearing for later experiments.

"That explains why the spiders were so much closer to the edge of the forest than usual." Snape said. He paused for a moment and stared at O'Connor. His eyes were difficult for her to read. "McKinnley, find the journal detailing the Christmas holiday."

It took him a moment but he finally found it.

"Oh. He was pissed. One of the Acromantulas escaped. Some kid called Allistar found it and picked its legs off." The young man made a face. "He must be something that kid."

"Oh he's something all right." O'Connor shuddered slightly.

"That explains how the boy came across the poor creature." Albus shook his head sadly.

"Well, I think we've seen everything we need to. We'll clear the room of evidence and return to the ministry to file it. I'm sorry you all had to go through this." Samantha said.

"Thank you." Dumbledore smiled sadly. "It's all been rather unfortunate. Now, if you'll please excuse me. I have a meeting with Simon Blackwell's family."

O'Connor and Snape were left standing in the hallway in silence as the Aurors cleaned Winters' office and Dumbledore left. The potions master could tell there was something his colleague wanted to say. She wrung her hands for a moment before she looked at him, his obsidian gaze as closed off as always. It made her chest tight for some reason.

"Do you want to play chess?"

He looked surprised for a moment before he nodded solemly. It wasn't hard to figure out what she was really trying to say.

_Can I have some company? I don't really want to be alone right now._

"If you are in the mood to be soundly defeated in chess than who am I to deny you?"

She smiled widely and playfully punched his arm.

* * *

6/21/1989

"Do you have any plans for the summer?" O'Connor moved her bishop three spaces with a small smile. She was likely to lose this game. It was all rather disappointing. This would make fifteen wins and seventeen losses. Snape knew it too. His obsidian eyes shone with quiet satisfaction. He could be smug about his wins, but he never gloated. She was grateful for that. It made her defeats easier to bear. Losing was difficult for someone like her who was so competitive she hated when someone even so much as read faster than her.

"If by plans you mean some sort of _fun_ vacation trip, then no. I will complete my lesson plans for the year, stock up on my more rare ingredients, and enjoy the peace and quiet I only get two months out of the year."

"I see. No fun for Snape. Got it. Just peace, quiet, and melancholy."

He glared at her and took her knight. She frowned and took his bishop then lost her rook. It would be checkmate in three moves or less now. Damn him.

"Would you permit me to write you over the summer?" His dark eyes drifted up to look at her, the frown line forming between his brows. "Oh don't look at me like that. We've been through a lot this year. I know you don't do friends-,"

"I have no need for friends."

"I would like to consider you as such, however."

"I suppose your letters would make for some excellent fire starter."

She rolled her eyes, but she could see the small quirk of his lips as he fought back a smirk.

* * *

Well that concludes Abigail's first year at Hogwarts. Stay tuned for The Wolf, the Bat, and The Spider Year 2!


End file.
